DairyReporter reports that Nidelven Blå cheese took first place in a fierce competition, with over 4,500 cheeses professionally evaluated for factors such as appearance, aroma, body, texture, flavor, and mouthfeel.

Cheeses from 43 countries

Held in Trondheim, Norway, the world's largest cheese-only event recorded a record 4,502 entries from 43 countries. A group of 264 international cheese experts, including critics, chefs, recipe creators, buyers, retailers, journalists, broadcasters, and others, gathered to taste and evaluate each cheese to determine which deserved bronze, silver, gold, or the Super Gold Award.

Through the judging process, the cheeses were narrowed down to 100 Super Golds, of which 16 finalists were selected for re-evaluation by an international Super Jury for the World Cheese Award to determine an overall winner.

The international Super Jury judging the final stage included 16 cheese experts from around the world, such as Cathy Strange from Whole Foods Market in the USA, Peter Mårtensson from the Swedish retailer Möllans Ost, Mansi Jasani from The Cheese Collective in India, Jon Thrupp from Mons Cheesemongers in the UK, and Aki Sakagami from the Cheese Professional Association in Japan. The final tasting took place in front of a live audience and was also broadcast online.

Among the 16 cheeses, two were from the UK, three from Italy, two from the Netherlands, two from Switzerland, two – from the same producer – from Germany, and single cheeses from India, Austria, Belgium, and the host country, Norway.

A Norwegian product

Nidelven Blå, introduced by the Norwegian cheese producer Gangstad Gårdsysteri, is made just two hours from the host city center and is named after the Nidelva River that runs through it. The dairy was founded by Astrid Aasen and Perry Frøysadal (photo, right) 25 years ago as Norway's first authorized cow farm.

The cheese itself is a semi-soft blue mold cheese made with pasteurized cow's milk and aged for six to nine months. It was previously recognized at the World Cheese Awards, winning Best Norwegian Cheese in 2019 and earning a Super Gold in 2020. This marks the third time a Norwegian cheese has won the top award, following previous wins in 2016 and 2018.

Maren Gangstadt, CEO of Gangstad Gårdsysteri, commented, "This means so much to us. We are a small dairy farm, just two hours away, so to have this happen on our home turf means a lot, and having the whole dairy factory crew adds an extra spark. This cheese was made in January, so it's about 11 months old now and is our best-seller. It won a Super Gold at the 2019 World Cheese Awards as the best Norwegian cheese, reflecting the hard work put into maintaining quality and consistency."

Super Jury judge Finbar Deery, head of retail at Sheridans in Ireland, said, "What I liked most about this cheese was the interaction between the milk and the blue flavors, so it's not overpowered by penicillin. The texture was the first thing that hit home; it has a dense creaminess. It's also a quite bitter cheese; we don't appreciate bitterness in cheese, but when you have such a rich texture, the bitterness comes out and holds the whole show together."

The top 16 Super Gold cheeses were:

1. Sinodun Hill from Norton and Yarrow Cheese, UK. Soft, pasteurized goat's milk cheese, aged for 1 to 3 weeks.
2. Old Amsterdam Goat from Westland Kaasexport, Netherlands. Semi-hard goat cheese, pasteurized, aged for 6 to 9 months.
3. Goustal La Bergere from Société des Caves, France. Soft, pasteurized sheep's milk cheese, aged for 6 weeks to 3 months.
4. Wigmore from Village Maid Cheese, UK. Soft sheep's milk cheese, thermized, aged 5-9 weeks.
5. Parmigiano Reggiano 30-39 months from Nazionale Parmigiano Reggiano Rastelli Fratelli, ITALY. Unpasteurized cow's milk cheese aged for 30 to 39 months.
6. Holland Delta, 1 year from Van der Heiden Kaas, Netherlands. Pasteurized cow's milk cheese aged for 1 year, with a sweet flavor derived from a secret rennet.
7. Eleftheria Brunost from Vivanda Gourmet, India. Pasteurized cow's milk cheese aged for 0 to 2 weeks. Made manually, cooking whey and cream from pasteurized cow's milk in a traditional wok-like vessel.
8. Eberle Würzig Seit 5 Generationen from Dorfkäserei Muolen, Switzerland. Hard, unpasteurized cow's milk cheese aged for 8 months.
9. Deichkäse Gold from Rohmilchkäserei Backensholz, Germany. Hard, organic unpasteurized cow's milk cheese aged for 12 to 18 months.
10. Kärntnermilch Mölltaler Almkäse Selektion 50% FiT. from Kärntnermilch, Austria. Hard, pasteurized cow's milk cheese aged for 12 months.
11. Lamucca Di Castagno from Romagna Terre, Italy. Pasteurized cow's milk cheese aged with chestnut leaf powder for 3 to 6 months.
12. Baliehof Houtlandse Asche Kaas from Baliehof Kaas En Zuivelboerderij Jabbeke, Belgium. Hard, unpasteurized cow's milk cheese aged for 3 months.
13. Müller-Thurgau Rezent from Käserei Müller-Thurgau, Switzerland. Hard, washed rind cheese, pasteurized cow's milk, aged for 11 months.
14. Nidelven Blå from Gangstad Gårdsysteri, Norway. Blue cheese made from pasteurized cow's milk aged for 11 months.
15. Pirano from La Bufalara, Italy. Pasteurized buffalo milk cheese, semi-hard, aged for 3 to 6 months.
16. Michel from Rohmilchkäserei Backensholz, Germany. Unpasteurized cow's and goat's milk cheese aged for 14 to 16 months.

Regional winners

The Guild of Fine Food also announced the best regional cheeses. Harbison from Cellars at Jasper Hill was named the best American cheese.

Best American Cheese – Harbison from Cellars at Jasper Hill (USA). A soft, mold-ripened cheese, pasteurized cow's milk, wrapped in manually harvested spruce bark, the cheese is made with vegetarian rennet and aged for 6 weeks to 3 months.

Best Australian Cheese – C2 from Bruny Island Cheese Co. (Australia). A hard, raw cow's milk cheese. Made with vegetarian rennet and aged for 6 to 12 months. brunyislandcheese.com.au

Best Austrian Cheese – Kärntnermilch Mölltaler Almkäse Selektion 50% F.i.T. from Kärntnermilch (Austria). A hard, pasteurized cow's milk cheese. Made with vegetarian rennet and aged for 12 months.

Best British Cheese – Sinodun Hill from Norton and Yarrow Cheese (UK). A soft, mold-ripened cheese, goat's milk pasteurized, with a Geotrichum rind. Made with vegetarian rennet and aged for 1 to 3 weeks.

Best Canadian Cheese – Alexis de Portneuf La Sauvagine from Saputo Dairy Products Canada (Canada). A soft, mold-ripened cheese, pasteurized cow's milk, with a supple rind. Made with animal rennet and aged for 2 to 6 weeks.

Best French Cheese – Le Goustal la Bergère from Société des Caves (France). A soft, pasteurized sheep's milk cheese. Made with animal rennet and aged for 6 weeks to 3 months.

Best German Cheese – Michel from Rohmilchkäserei Backensholz (Germany). A hard, raw cow's and goat's milk cheese. Made with animal rennet and aged for 12 to 18 months.

Best Greek Cheese – Truffeta from D. Kissas Bros & Co. (Greece). A sheep and goat milk cheese in feta style, with summer truffles. Made with animal rennet and aged for 3 to 6 months.

Best Irish Cheese – Mount Leinster Clothbound from Coolattin Cheddar (Ireland). A raw cow's milk farm cheddar. Made with animal rennet and aged for 14 months.

Best Italian Cheese – Parmigiano Reggiano 30-39 months from Nazionale Parmigiano Reggiano Rastelli Fratelli (Italy). A hard, DOP cow's milk cheese. Made with animal rennet and aged for 30 to 39 months.

Best Japanese Cheese – Tokyo Brown Cheese from Cheese Stand (Japan). A pasteurized brown cheese made from cow's whey and milk, aged for 0 to 2 weeks.

Best Latin American Cheese – Morro Azul from Pomerode Alimentos (Brazil). A soft, mold-ripened cheese, pasteurized cow's milk, wrapped in oak bark. Made with vegetarian rennet and aged for 2 to 6 weeks.

Best Dutch Cheese – Delta Olandei – 1 year from Van der Heiden Kaas (Netherlands). A hard Gouda, pasteurized cow's milk. Made with "secret" animal rennet and aged for 9 to 12 months.

Best Norwegian Cheese – Nidelven Blå from Gangstad Gårdsysteri (Norway). A blue cheese from pasteurized cow's milk. Made with animal rennet and aged for 6 to 9 months.

Best Portuguese Cheese – São Jorge DOP 4 months from LactAçores (Portugal). A semi-hard DOP cheese, with raw cow's milk. Made with animal rennet and aged for 3 to 6 months.

Best South African Cheese – Simonsberg Gouda 6 months from Lactalis South Africa (South Africa). Pasteurized Gouda cheese from cow's milk. Made with vegetarian rennet and aged for 6 months.

Best Spanish Cheese – Capricho Homenaje from Formatgeria Granja Rinya (Spain). A soft, mold-ripened cheese, pasteurized cow's milk. Made with vegetarian rennet and aged for 0 to 2 weeks.

Best Swiss Cheese – Eberle würzig seit 5 Generationen from Dorfkäserei Muolen (Switzerland). A hard, raw cow's milk cheese. Made with animal rennet and aged for 6 to 9 months.

Best Ukrainian Cheese – Tverdyy vytrymanyy z pazhytnykom from Zinka (Ukraine). A hard, pasteurized goat's milk cheese with dried fenugreek. Made with vegetarian rennet and aged for 6 months.

Best Cheddar Cheese – Mount Leinster Clothbound from Coolattin Cheddar (Ireland). A raw cow's milk farm cheddar. Made with animal rennet and aged for 14 months.

Best Le Gruyère Cheese – Le Gruyère AOP Premier Cru – Châtonnaye from Cremo (Switzerland). A hard, unpasteurized cow's milk cheese, made with animal rennet, aged for more than 10 months.

Best New Cheese – Tokyo Brown Cheese from Cheese Stand (Japan). A pasteurized brown cheese made from cow's whey and milk, aged for 0 to 2 weeks.

Best Smoked Cheese – Nero Fumè from Latteria Moro di Moro Sergio (Italy). A blue cheese, pasteurized cow's milk, smoked and flavored with Lapsang Souchong black tea. Made with animal rennet and aged for 6 weeks to 3 months.

Best SCA Member Cheese – Sinodun Hill from Norton and Yarrow Cheese (UK). A soft, mold-ripened goat's milk cheese, with a Geotrichum rind. Made with vegetarian rennet and aged for 1 to 3 weeks.

Ann-Marie Dyas Award for Best Artisan Cheese – Presented by The Fine Cheese Co. – Lamucca di Castagno from Romagna Terre (Italy). A hard, pasteurized cow's milk cheese, aged with chestnut leaf powder. Made with animal rennet and aged for 3 to 6 months.

Best Cheese Producers – Gangstad Gårdsysteri cheese producers (Norway), led by Maren Gangstad and Astrid Aasen for Nidelven Blå.