On 4th June, America celebrates National Cheese Day, but as Dorset is home to some of the best cheeses in the world, we thought we’d jump in on the action too!
When it comes to cheese, Dorset does it better than any one, with a wide variety of flavours and textures, it is the one stop shop for cheeselovers, whether you’re after goats’ cheese, traditional cheeses or even sheep cheese you’ll find it here.
The most famous cheese from the county is, of course, Dorset Blue Vinny, which was once made all over Dorset until the outbreak of WW2, which caused a break in production for the first time in 300 years. These days, Blue Vinny is only made by one producer, but it is still handmade and still to the original recipe.
If you’ve never experience Blue Vinny, it is an artisan blue cheese, made from fresh milk, which is skimmed by hand before the cheesemaking process begins. It takes over 24 hours to make and the truckles are left for up to 18 weeks to mature. Historically, there are a host of stories as to how the cheese gets its blue streaks, including tales of mouldy horse harnesses being dragged through the cheese! Thankfully, that isn’t part of the process!
Another great place to find locally produced cheeses is from the Book and Bucket Cheese Company, a small family owned business producing small batch artisan cheeses from the highest quality sheep and cow’s milk, sourced from around the county.
All of their cheese products are named after famous literary figures and come in a variety of flavours and textures, such as the Orwell, a creamy soft cheese and the Hardy, a sheep cheese.
One local cheesemaker embracing both modern and traditional cheesemaking techniques is Ford Farm. The team here are exceptional cheese makers who have been perfecting their art for over 40 years. They are constantly offering new concepts to their ever growing range and are most famous for their Cave Aged Cheddar. They are also the team behind the first ever cave aged goat’s cheese! By creating it in this way, you end up with a unique flavour – so make sure to add some to your shopping lists!
If you’re seething with jealousy because of lactose intolerance, don’t let the FOMO get to you, there are cheeses on offer for you too! Why not give sheep cheese a try? Milks and cheeses from sheep are healthier than the more traditional alternatives and have a much lower lactose content, which is ideal if you suffer from intolerances but still want to enjoy cheese! Buckshaw Milk Sheep are one of the region’s premium sheep cheese producers and have a several varieties of cheese on offer.
At the farm, the ewes are all hand milked and the cheese produced on site. Currently, they have a semi hard blue cheese, a strong unpressed white cheese and a feta style cheese to choose from! Their cheeses are great additions to all your favourite dishes and as sheep’s cheese helps lower cholesterol, you can feel less guilty too!
Obviously, these are just a few of the amazing cheese makers you can find in Dorset, so make sure to head to your nearest farmshop, farmers’ market or just go online and support our local cheesemakers.
