🧀 Havarti

Havarti is a Danish matured, firm cheese made from cow's milk. It is protected in the EU as a PGI: the name may be used only for cheese made in Denmark to the product specification.

Making. According to the specification, the milk is standardised for fat and pasteurised, then starter and rennet are added. The curd is cut, stirred, drained and heated, the curd grains are filled into moulds and pressed, and the cheeses are cooled and salted. They are then wrapped in plastic or given a smear for surface ripening, which may be helped by Debaryomyces hansenii, Geotrichum candidum or Brevibacterium linens. The cheeses ripen at the dairy until the typical taste and texture are reached.

Ripening. With a rind: 1–2 weeks of smear ripening at 14–21 °C, then 1–3 weeks at 8–16 °C. Without a rind: 3 weeks at 2–21 °C.

Look and taste. Havarti is round or square. The paste is whitish or ivory to pure yellowish, soft but still sliceable, with a slight bite (al dente), and has many irregular rice-sized holes, mostly 1–2 mm wide and up to 10 mm long. The smell and taste are mild, slightly tangy and aromatic with some fullness, becoming more pronounced with age. The maximum water content falls from 54% to 44% as the fat in dry matter rises.

Varieties and labelling. Permitted flavourings are herbs and spices, ramsons, garlic and jalapeno; they must be stated apart from the name but in the same field of view. Havarti with at least 60% fat in dry matter may be labelled "Flødehavarti" (cream Havarti).

Havarti or Gouda, Muenster, Swiss? Each has its own rules, so compare how Havarti is made. The cow's milk is standardised for fat and pasteurised, and the cheeses are either wrapped in plastic or given a smear that ripens the surface, for 1–3 weeks or more. The paste is soft but still sliceable, with a slight bite and many irregular rice-sized holes, and the taste stays mild and slightly tangy. The name is a PGI, so it means cheese made in Denmark to the specification.

Look for the name Havarti with the EU PGI symbol (protected geographical indication); the cheese must be made in Denmark. It is round or square, with a rind or wrapped in plastic. Flavourings such as herbs, garlic or jalapeno must be named beside the name, and a Havarti with at least 60 % fat in dry matter may be labelled “Flødehavarti”. You will find it at a supermarket cheese counter, in packs or at a delicatessen.

Name. According to the specification, the name honours Hanne Nielsen, who made cheese at the Havarthigaard farm in Holte near Copenhagen in the second half of the 19th century. The cheese later named Havarti was first made in Denmark in 1921.