Mold is usually associated with negative things. It is the stuff that can grow on the very walls in our home when there is too much moisture or when the home has sustained water damage from a flood. It is the stuff that can grow on our foods, which tells us that it is no longer safe to eat and has to be thrown away. It can even cause allergic reactions, respiratory problems, and disease.

There is one instance, however, where mold is a good thing. When creating certain cheeses, mold is actually encouraged to grow or injected with bacterial cultures to grow mold. Although the idea of moldy cheese may be repulsive to some, the vast majority of people who like cheese in general end up loving moldy cheese. Here is a list of a few moldy cheeses:

Camembert:

After tasting it for the very first time in 1855, Napoleon himself named this cheese, which originated from the village of Camembert. Marie Harel made the first batch with pasteurized cow's milk. The milk is curdled and introduced to bacteria to increase mold production. In the beginning stages of ripening, the cheese is usually soft and crumbly but gets creamier within two to three weeks. After 21 days, the cheese should have acquired a yellowish appearance and is ready to be eaten with a baguette, fruit, crackers, or just by itself.

Blue cheese:

Among the many varieties of Blue cheese are two of the most popular cheeses, Stilton and Gorgonzola.

Currently, Stilton cheese is only produced in eight dairies, all located in the counties of Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, and Leicestershire. There are two kinds that are produced: blue and white. There are rather strict guidelines one must adhere to for Stilton production: They must be made only in the three aforementioned counties with local pasteurized milk; they must be unpressed; their final form must take on the traditional cylindrical shape; they must have blue veins that radiate from the center of the cheese; and they must be allowed to form their own crust. Most commonly eaten with celery or pears, this cheese can also be accompanied with other fruits, a baguette, a cracker, or as a topping on certain dishes.

Gorgonzola cheese originates from Italy's Milan region. It is made from pasteurized cow's milk and added with the bacteria Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus and Penicillium glaucum mold spores. During production, whey, a milk protein, is removed. The cheese is then aged at low temperatures, followed by the insertion of metallic rods to help create air channels so the mold can grow. Gorgonzola is usually aged between three and four months. Cheese that is creamier indicates a shorter aging period, and harder cheese indicates a longer aging period.