The rind is the outside layer that is part of the cheese's aging process. It's sort of like the crust on bread - it's part of the cheese so you can in fact, and absolutely should (depending how adventurous your palate is), eat it. Well, that is unless of course the rind is made out of wax, bark, or cheesecloth.
The rind is where the ripening starts, which is why a cheese's most complex and often most pungent tastes live there. The rind can tell you the story of how the cheese was made and a great deal about the flavor profile before you even bite into it.
2 comment(s):
Does anyone actually peel their cheese?
We live in Nova Scotia, and one of the bonuses to being half way educated and worldly here is that they mark down cheeses like Camembert and Brie to half price about the time they begin to ripen and soften a little. They generally need another two weeks on top of the refrigerator before they are really ready to eat, but it is nice not to have to wait as long and to get them at half price.
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