People & Place
British and Irish Cheeses
British and Irish Cheeses brings together the articles in this hub, from familiar names to cheeses you may want to explore next. Begin with Cheddar, then choose a question about names, making, texture or flavour.
Start here: Cheddar (available now): what defines the style?
Start here
Cheddar
Cheddar is a ripened hard cheese with roots around the village of Cheddar in Somerset, England, and a name now used for cheese made in many countries.
West Country Farmhouse Cheddar Cheese
Large pieces of curd turn and stack under the cheesemaker’s hands.
Stilton
Cut into a cylinder of Blue Stilton and pale paste opens beneath your knife, threaded with blue-green mould.
White Stilton (Stilton White Cheese)
Put your knife to White Stilton and watch it crumble.
Red Leicester
Beneath the muslin at Sparkenhoe, six months of waiting leads to an orange interior.
Sage Derby
Cut into Sage Derby and green seams appear against the pale cheese.
Double Gloucester
Cut into a broad wheel of Double Gloucester and the orange interior comes into view.
Everything in this section
- Single GloucesterThree cows and a bull.
- LancashireBreak into a traditional Lancashire and notice its open texture.
- Lincolnshire PoacherBefore you cut the first piece, take in the whole Lincolnshire Poacher: approximately 20 kg of hard cheese, its pale yel
- WensleydaleBreak a piece of pale ivory Wensleydale and watch the moist flakes part beneath your fingers.
- CheshireBreak off a piece of good Cheshire and watch the crumbs fall.
- CaerphillyYour knife meets a rind-ripened Caerphilly, and one wedge offers two pleasures: a fresh, crumbly centre and a softer, cr
- Shropshire BlueCut into Shropshire Blue and you get quite a colour scheme: orange crossed by blue-green veins.
- Stinking BishopBefore you reach for the bread, the brown-pink rind has introduced itself.
- Cornish YargWhite mould traces a pale pattern across overlapping nettle leaves.
- SticheltonOn the Welbeck Estate in Nottinghamshire, the morning’s raw cows’ milk has a full day ahead of it.
- Beenleigh BlueThe first bite brings earthy blue notes and a gentle sharpness.
- Dorset Blue VinnyIn the kitchen and larder at Woodbridge Farm near Sturminster Newton, cheesemaking experiments begin to outgrow their su
- Swaledale CheesePicture a piece of cheese being tasted, its crumb and tang carrying a recipe into new hands.
- Swaledale Ewes' CheeseBreak into the white cylinder and it gives way in open crumbs.
- TunworthAn earthy mushroom aroma rises as you unwrap Tunworth.
- Baron BigodYour knife slips through the white rind into a silky golden layer, then meets a fresher, citrusy centre.
- Isle of Mull CheddarAt the winter feeding trough at Sgriob-ruadh Farm, Tobermory Distillery has a part to play.
- DunlopYour knife passes through a thin, hard, golden rind into pale yellow cheese.
- Lanark BlueTake a bite and the tang arrives first.
- CabocYour knife meets coarse oatmeal, then slips into pale yellow cream cheese.
- Cashel BlueTake a look at your wedge before the first bite.
- GubbeenThe Atlantic lies along one boundary, Mount Gabriel rises behind you, and in the dairy a cheese is quietly finding its c
- DurrusCut into Durrus and the cream-coloured centre may bulge slightly beneath its mottled rind.
- MilleensA mottled peach and orange rind catches your eye.
- CooleaTake a bite of Coolea and the buttery mildness arrives first.
- Orkney Scottish Island CheddarInside the dairy, the curd keeps moving.
- Staffordshire CheeseA warm Staffordshire oatcake, folded around pale cream cheese, is a fine place to begin.
- Dovedale CheeseCut into Dovedale and blue veins appear through a creamy-white body.
- Bath Soft CheesePeel back the parchment and lift away the red wax seal.
- Perl LasCut into Perl Las and the knife reveals gold, creamy paste and threads of blue mould.
- ArdrahanThe smell reaches you first.
- Exmoor Blue CheeseA piece of bread, a buttery yellow paste, a thread of blue.
- Bonchester CheeseCut into a ripe Bonchester and the yellow paste can flow beneath its white bloomy rind.
- Buxton BlueCut into Buxton Blue and there it is: a sweep of russet crossed with blue veins.
- Teviotdale CheesePicture your knife passing through a natural white crust into a yellow centre.
- Pevensey BlueYour knife slips into a soft paste threaded with dark blue veins.
- RollrightSlip a spoon beneath Rollright's peachy-pink rind and feel the centre give way, its softening edges held snugly by a spr
- AshcombeCut into Ashcombe and a dark ash line wanders through the pale, supple interior beneath a terracotta washed rind.
- Barkham BlueCut into Barkham Blue and a golden, buttery interior appears beneath its coiled outline.
- Bath BlueYour knife meets a gentle crumble.
- Cornish KernYour knife passes through Cornish Kern’s black coating and reveals gold: the reward for 16 to 22 months at Lynher Dairie
- Devon BlueYou set out to cut a neat slice of Devon Blue.
- DorstoneCut through Dorstone’s finely wrinkled, ash-coated rind and the knife meets something unexpectedly light: fresh goat’s m
- DriftwoodCut across Driftwood’s little log and you get a striking contrast: dark ash outside, pale cheese within.
- English PecorinoBefore your knife reaches the cheese, that rind catches your eye: ochre-brown, with pale ridges reaching towards the cen
- EveLift back Eve’s vine leaf and look at the centre.
- Flower MarieAt Greenacres Farm in East Sussex, curd is lifted by hand into square moulds.
- Golden CrossCut across a log of Golden Cross and three layers greet you: white mould bloom, fine charcoal coating, pale goat’s milk
- Golden SayeCut through the greyish white rind and there it is: gold.
- Harbourne BlueTake a bite where the pale cheese meets a little blue.
- HeckfieldCut through Heckfield’s ochre exterior and there is gold beneath your knife.
- Little SheCut through Little She's white bloom and you reach a centre that softens as it ripens.
- Maida ValeA bite of rind, then a little of the centre.
- Merry WyfeApples from the farm, cider on the rind, then another wash every other day for four weeks.
- OgleshieldA slice of Ogleshield softens over a hot potato, and suddenly Somerset has your full attention.
- Old WinchesterFirst, the firm bite.
- Pavé CobbleYour knife slips through the ash coating into a soft centre, smoother still as Pavé Cobble ripens.
- RachelYour knife passes through Rachel’s mottled, brine-washed rind and finds something gentler beneath.
- RagstoneCut into a log of Ragstone and a soft, lemony centre appears inside its creamy-white mould rind.
- Renegade MonkOpen the maple box and the aroma arrives before your knife does.
- Sharpham BrieCut through the white bloom and a golden centre comes into view.
- Sharpham CremetYour knife slips through the pale rind of young Sharpham Cremet to find a mousse-like centre, delicate despite all that
- Sharpham ElmhirstCut through Elmhirst’s edible white bloom and watch the centre tell its age.
- Sharpham RusticYour knife slips through a white bloom, then meets a golden centre that crumbles rather than surrenders to a spoon.
- Sheep RustlerCut through Sheep Rustler’s mottled rind and a firm, pale centre comes into view.
- SolsticeFirst, those delicate wrinkles and that peachy orange rind.
- SpenwoodA slice for your board, a grating for your dinner: Spenwood has more than one way of making itself useful.
- St CeraPut a spoon into ripe St Cera and you may find a centre like custard, soft enough to scoop rather than slice, according
- St JudeFirst, the wrinkles.
- TicklemoreBefore you reach for the knife, take a closer look at Ticklemore’s white rind.
- TorLook up from White Lake’s farm in Somerset and you can see Glastonbury Tor on the skyline.
- WaterlooCut through Waterloo’s white rind and there it is: a golden centre, growing softer as the cheese ripens.
- White NancyYour knife meets White Nancy’s delicate white mould rind, then breaks into its crumbly goat’s milk centre.
- WigmoreYour knife slips through Wigmore’s soft layer beneath the white rind, then meets a firmer, chalky centre.
- WinsladeYour spoon slips beneath Winslade’s white rind into a yielding centre, held inside a narrow spruce collar.
- Wyfe of BathYour knife meets a little resistance, then gives way to a firm, springy slice of Wyfe of Bath.
- YarlingtonFour washes with brine, then two more with cider in the mix.
- AbatyCut through Abaty’s white rind and you reach a pale, yielding centre.
- Abaty GlasA soft, buttery bite, a little tang, then the temptation to cut another sliver.
- Black SheepSlip off the black paper sleeve, cut through the ivory wax, and you reach pale yellow cheese with a close interior, slig
- Brefu BachStep inside a converted former Catholic church in Bethesda, Gwynedd, and you find a new calling: cheesemaking.
- Brightwell Ash / Onnen BrightwellEven the cheesemaking rooms packed up and moved.
- Caws CerwynA small piece, a creamy mouthful, then a name that takes you into the hills.
- Caws ChwaralStep inside a converted Catholic church on Bethesda’s High Street and you find a creamery and a cheese counter.
- Caws PreseliCut through the pale rind of Caws Preseli and a glossy, straw-coloured interior comes into view.
- Cenarth BrieCut through Cenarth Brie’s white rind and you might find an almost chalky centre, or something much softer.
- Drewi SantA sweet smell reaches you first.
- Golden CenarthFirst comes the aroma.
- Perl WenCut through Perl Wen's soft white mould rind and there's a surprise waiting: a centre Caws Cenarth describes as citrus-f
- SavalCut into Saval and you meet a pale, buttery centre beneath a rind of contrasting colour.
- Sinodun Hill / Bryn SinodunAt the cheese counter, a little pyramid catches your eye.
- TeifiFirst comes a little crunch.
- AnsterA piece from the centre crumbles under your knife.
- Black Crowdie / Gruth DhuFirst, the coarse oatmeal.
- BlackmountBeneath Blackmount’s dark coat of ash, the cheese is quietly softening.
- Bonnington LinnBlocks of curd are stacked, ready for a night under the press.
- Clava BriePicture the circular prehistoric burial cairns at Balnuaran of Clava, then turn your attention to a round cheese made a
- Connage GoudaPicture clover-rich pasture beside the Moray Firth, with a Highland dairy near Inverness turning its own cows’ milk into
- Corra LinnCut through the clothbound exterior of Corra Linn and you meet a firm, pale cheese with crumble, sweetness and tang.
- Crowdie / Skinny CrowdieAn oatcake, a spoonful of Crowdie, and soft, crumbly curds against that simple base.
- Elrick LogCut through the dark vegetable ash of Elrick Log and you reach a soft, white centre.
- Fat CowCut through Fat Cow's bread-crust-coloured rind and a smooth, waxy interior comes into view.
- Lanark WhiteTake a bite of a pale ivory wedge of Lanark White.
- MingerBefore you reach the cheeseboard, Minger may already have introduced itself.
- Morangie BrieYour knife slips through a white rind, into a centre that turns silky at full ripeness.
- Red AnsterFresh garlic, chives and a tumble of crumbs: all you need now is a piece of bread.
- Strathdon BlueYour first bite yields softly, almost like fudge.
- Banagher BoldThat orange rind has had a brush with local craft beer.
- KilcreenLook up from Dart Mountain Cheese’s dairy to the mountainside opposite.
- Meeny Hill BlueA small piece of Meeny Hill Blue, plain bread and a little fruit: give this cheese some room on your plate.
- Meeny Hill GoatUp on Meeny Hill, goats browse among gorse and mountain ash.
- Single Rose BrieFresh milk leaves the Wright family’s dairy farm at Ballylisk.
- Sperrin BlueBelow Dart Mountain, a former agricultural barn has swapped farm duties for cheesemaking.
- TirkeeranTake a bite, then pause before reaching for the next slice.
- Triple RoseYour knife slips through Triple Rose’s white mould rind into a soft, cream-enriched centre.
- BallinrostigA family garage in east Cork became a dairy.
- Boyne Valley BánYour knife passes through the natural rind into a white, firm centre, leaving a few crumbs behind.
- Boyne Valley BlueCut through the brown natural rind and there it is: creamy-white cheese, threaded with blue, ready to crumble beneath yo
- Cáis na TíreA thin flake breaks away.
- CooleeneyYour knife slips through a mushroom-scented white rind, into pale yellow paste, then reaches a slightly chalky heart.
- CorleggyYour knife meets a firm centre, then the natural rind.
- Crozier BlueSlide a knife into Crozier Blue in summer and your wedge may gently yield.
- DarúCut through Darú’s grey, dusty rind and there it is: yellow paste, small openings and a chalky centre that softens as th
- DunbarraA knife slips through a white rind into a yielding middle.
- DunmanusA Swiss cheese harp slips through curd in a copper-lined vat at Coomkeen, near Durrus village in West Cork.
- Gleann ÓirEditorial status: held for correction of the brief and completion of primary-source checks.
- GortnamonaCut into Gortnamona and watch the knife reveal two textures.
- Killeen Goat GoudaCut through the thin coating of Killeen Goat Gouda and a pale, supple interior comes into view.
- MaigheanCut through Maighean’s white mould rind and you meet yellow paste, with a robust, earthy mouthful to follow.
- MossfieldSlide your knife through Young Mossfield, then break a piece from Mature.
- Shepherd's StoreYour knife slips through a pale natural rind into firm cheese with a delicately creamy texture.
- St Tola Ash LogCut through that dark coat and a soft white centre appears.
- St Tola DivineA spoon slips into something white, smooth and unexpectedly light.
- St Tola LogCut into a mature St Tola Log and there it is: a golden natural rind, floral sweetness and the first suggestion of honey
- TemplegallIn Whitechurch, County Cork, a brush sweeps across a great wheel of Templegall.