The Marinated Cheese That Quietly Went From Hidden Gem to Cult Favourite

I believed I would stumbled onto a hidden gem at a cheese store the primary time I purchased a jar of Meredith “feta.” This was about eight or 9 years in the past, after I was dwelling and cooking professionally in Beacon, New York. One way or the other this Australian dairy farm’s cheese had discovered its means onto the cabinets of specialty grocery shops there. Contained in the jar have been massive, pillowy blocks of goat’s and sheep’s milk cheese—extra like marshmallows than neat cubes—floating in golden olive oil with herbs, garlic, and peppercorns. The cheese was lush and tangy, the oil too good to not drizzle over all the things. I fell in love immediately.

For some time, I believed I would uncovered a secret, till associates and coworkers stored asking me, “Have you ever tried that cheese? The one within the glass jar?” Apparently, my hidden gem wasn’t so hidden in spite of everything. In some unspecified time in the future, folks began to confer with it as merely “Australian feta”—an odd, unfamiliar label that solely deepened the attract.

I even determined to place Meredith’s marinated cheese on a menu as soon as, again after I was working in restaurant kitchens within the Hudson Valley—unfold over flatbread with caramelized fennel, candied fennel, and a drizzle of buckwheat honey. Admittedly, it was a little bit of a lazy cop-out; scrumptious cheese on heat bread was at all times going to be a success. However the response confirmed what I would been seeing in every single place: Diners could not get sufficient of it. Reddit threads solely drove the purpose residence—gushing posts in regards to the cheese, with customers describing how they eat it and why they like it. Reddit person ciaohow even declared, “It’s the most scrumptious factor I’ve eaten all 12 months.” It was clear by then that just about everybody had caught on. 

Over time, I began recognizing these jars in greater grocery shops too—Complete Meals, Foodtown, nook markets in New York Metropolis. A cheese as soon as tucked away in specialty retailers was abruptly proper there subsequent to your on a regular basis mozzarella.

So what’s it about Meredith “feta” that is stored me hooked all these years—and why has this jarred cheese impressed such devotion in others as nicely?

What Is Meredith “Feta,” and How Is It Completely different From Greek Feta?

First issues first: Meredith “feta” is not technically feta. In 2002, the European Union granted Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) standing to feta, which suggests solely cheese made in Greece, underneath particular circumstances, can use the title. Meredith Dairy—an Australian farmstead creamery about 50 miles west of Melbourne—needed to rebrand and drop “feta” from its label, and at this time the jars are formally labeled Meredith Dairy Marinated Sheep and Goat Cheese. Nonetheless, everybody I do know (and most cheese counters) continues to name it Meredith feta, a lot the best way we casually confer with Sirene as Bulgarian feta.

Conventional Greek feta is made both solely from sheep’s milk or from a mix of sheep’s and goat’s milk, with goat’s milk capped at 30 p.c; it’s at all times preserved in brine. The brine not solely considerably salts the cheese but in addition permits it to proceed getting old, which sharpens the tang and deepens the funk. The result’s creamy but crumbly, with a salty, funky tang. 

Meredith’s model is completely different. To start out, it is comprised of a mixture of goat’s and sheep’s milk. Sheep’s milk is prized in Australia for its richness: It is naturally greater in fats and protein than cow’s or goat’s milk, with about 5.4 grams of protein per 100 grams, in comparison with 3.2 grams in cow’s milk, and three.1 grams in goat’s milk. That additional richness interprets right into a creamier texture and a rounder, extra mellow taste—richer than goat’s milk and extra flavorful than cow’s. Goat’s milk, in contrast, brings sharper, barnyard notes, the sort of funk that provides the cheese dimension and retains it from studying as purely creamy. Collectively, the 2 create Meredith’s signature stability: full-bodied from the sheep’s milk, with a particular edge from the goat’s.

The Australian cheese additionally skips the brine altogether. As an alternative, the blocks are packed in olive oil infused with garlic, herbs, and peppercorns, which provides the cheese a creamier, plush, and spreadable texture. As somebody who often chases down funkier cheeses, I am stunned by how a lot I like Meredith’s creamier, extra rounded profile. It is luxurious, fiercely tangy, and herb-laced. And as soon as the cheese is gone, that oil doubles as a taste booster—excellent for drizzling on salads, roasted greens, and even eggs.

The Story Behind Meredith Dairy and Its Well-known Marinated “Feta”

Meredith Dairy started in 1991, when Sandy and Julie Cameron—he a veterinarian, she an ICU nurse—determined to rethink their farming future in rural Australia. On the time, they have been elevating sheep for wool, however when wool costs collapsed, they turned to milking as a substitute, and cheesemaking appeared promising. Their first sheep gave them simply 200 milliliters of milk, a tiny begin that they slowly constructed on. Immediately, in response to the firm’s personal website, Meredith is the biggest sheep-and-goat dairy farm in Australia.

The corporate’s attain extends past Australia. Meredith started promoting cheese within the US in 2008, first underneath the 34 Levels label earlier than transitioning to their very own title, in response to a December 2021 article by Elisa Shoenberger in The Cheese Professor. Immediately, their marinated cheese reveals up in every single place from specialty retailers to Costco shops, with US gross sales accounting for about 10% of their enterprise on the time Elisa’s article was revealed—and it is nonetheless rising.

Serving and Cooking Concepts for Meredith “Feta”

Meredith “feta” would not crumble fairly like conventional Greek feta, however that is a part of its appeal. Creamy and spreadable, with an arresting but balanced taste, it really works effortlessly into dishes the place you need savory richness with out the assertively sharp saltiness of brined cheese. Listed here are a few of my favourite methods to make use of it:

• Spoon over a tomato-cucumber salad. As an alternative of crumbling, add small items proper on high; their creamy texture performs nicely in opposition to the crunch of the greens.
• Unfold on toast. A swipe of Meredith topped with slices of tomato and smoked salmon makes for an instantaneous improve to breakfast or a lightweight lunch.
• Flip it right into a pasta sauce. Whisk the cheese with somewhat of its infused oil, pasta cooking water, and lemon zest, then fold in blistered cherry tomatoes and caramelized garlic slices—the combination melts right into a savory, shiny sauce that adheres to the noodles.
• High flatbread. Unfold it as the bottom layer, then end with roasted maitake mushrooms and butternut squash for one thing earthy, savory, and wealthy.
• Pair with pita and za’atar. Scoop it up with cucumbers, heat pita, and a sprinkle of za’atar for a easy mezze-style snack.

Tuck into an omelet. Its creamy texture melts into the eggs, including a salty kick. It is particularly good topped with a sprinkle of finely chopped herbs.

The Takeaway

It is probably not Greek feta, however Meredith Dairy’s marinated sheep and goat cheese has earned its personal devoted following for being creamy, tangy, and versatile sufficient to anchor a salad, enrich a sauce, or function a snack straight from the jar. It at all times impresses my dinner visitors after I serve it, however extra importantly, it impresses me on the nights after I want an exceedingly scrumptious snack and cannot be bothered to cook dinner. At first, it felt like an opportunity discovery; now it is a staple I can not think about my fridge with out.