Parrano Aged Gouda

Parrano is a brand of aged Gouda made by the Dutch cheesemaker Uniekass. They discovered that a mild Gouda (which is a semi soft, mild flavored cheese aged for 2-3 months) when stored at the right temperature and humidity and turned frequently over a period of nine months would transform into a completely different cheese. They began to sell their new discovery as Parrano – “the Gouda that thinks it’s a Parmesan”. Indeed, the resulting cheese tasted and performed more like a hard Italian style cheese than mild semi soft Dutch cheese. Parrano has a dark amber color with a perfumy whiskey-like aroma. The flavor is both sharp and sweet at the same time with serious overtones of caramel, honey, and butterscotch. Parrano is a nice addition to a cheese plate and has the versatility of a grating cheese as well. Because of the inherent sweetness to the cheese it is better served with bread and fruit than grated over pasta but it is dynamite grated into twice baked potatoes or in a potato au gratin recipe. If you’ve never tried an aged Gouda, start with Parrano – you won’t believe how complex a simple cheese like Gouda can become.