August 20, 2011 15:44

Blur's Alex James launches controversial cheese range

The bassist's curry, tomato ketchup and sweet chili cheeses will be available at Asda

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Photo: PA

Blur's Alex James has enraged the cheese community with his new supermarket range.

The bass player, a noted dairy aficionado, is launching a new selection for Asda, with flavours including curry, tomato ketchup and chili.

James, a former winner of the British Cheese Awards, launched the range saying: "I'm hugely passionate about this range and I’m so excited that I’ve been able to bring it to life. Seeing it stocked in Asda will give me a big kick. Asda were the natural choice for this project.

"They’ve believed in my vision for the range and I’ve welcomed their expertise in cheesemaking, their confidence in this product and willingness to bring something cutting edge and truly innovative to the market."

But James' vision has not been met fondly among cheese experts. Juliet Harbutt, with whom he created the award-winning Little Wallop, a goats cheese wrapped in vine leaf and washed in Somerset cider brandy, told The Independent:

It's a bit tricky because Alex and I have made cheese together in the past - but nothing like this lot. There’s so much potential for fabulous cheeses that I was surprised Alex decided to go down this route.

She continued:

With flavoured cheeses, you've got the good the bad and ugly, and I think it's a real shame that a range of cheeses created for children is so dumbed down. Children have great palettes and they love interesting cheese and I don't think you need to dumb them down.

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