ColoRouge
- Producer
- Mouco Cheese Company Inc.
- Country
- United States
- Region
- Colorado
- Size
- 3 ins diameter, 1 in high
- Weight
- 5 oz
- Website
- www.mouco.com
- Milk
- Cow
- Classification
- Soft
- Rennet
- Animal
- Rind
- Washed
MouCo Cheese Company is owned by Birgit Halbreiter and Robert Poland, who met while working for the New Belgium Brewing Company. Birgit, who is originally from Germany, has a background in Food Science and Robert was the Fermentation Manager at the brewery. In 2000, after some experimental cheesemaking at home, Birgit enlisted the help of her father, Franz, a master cheesemaker from Germany. Today, MouCo Cheese Company produces four types of soft cheese: MouCo Camembert, ColoRouge, Ashley and Truffello. Pasteurized milk, predominantly from Holstein cows, is sourced from Morning Fresh Dairy, located just outside Fort Collins. For production of the ColoRouge, the milk is heated and the cultures and rennet added. After coagulation, the curd is carefully ladled into molds to preserve as much moisture as possible, and allowed to drain. After a few hours, the cheeses are unmolded and salted which helps to kick-start the development of the rind. The young cheeses are then transferred to racks and dried slightly before being moved to the maturing cave. During this time, the cheeses are regularly washed with a culture called Bacterium Linens. This causes a white and orange-red mold to develop on the exterior of the cheese and also gives the cheeses a slightly pungent aroma. After a period of about two weeks the cheeses are ready to be released. The texture of ColoRouge is soft, creamy and yielding. The rind is a distinctive red-orange color, with a pleasing aroma and the interior paste is pale yellow. The flavors of ColoRouge are buttery, rich and smooth with a clean lactic finish. With age, the texture becomes more luscious and viscous whilst the flavor changes and becomes quite spicy and complex.
