Experience and knowledge, science and art, technology and tradition all come together to make our cheese. It’s this combination of expertise that means our cheddar always leaves the farm in peak condition.
Cheesemaking is both a science and an art. Milk changes from season to season, depending on what the cows eat or even the weather. As well as scientific gadgets, our cheesemakers use their experience and instincts throughout the cheesemaking process to ensure our cheddar is the best it can be.
The cheesemaking day begins with fresh milk from our own and other local farms. After pasteurisation, we add our unique traditional starter cultures and vegetarian rennet. We cut up the resulting curds and gently heat them, then drain away the whey.
The curds form slabs which we cut up and stack by hand — the process known as ‘cheddaring’.
We mill the curds into small pieces and add salt for preservation and flavour. Finally, we press them into blocks to be matured in wooden boxes.
It takes less than a day to turn our milk into cheese but this is just the start. As it matures, the starter cultures continue to work, influencing the final texture, aroma and taste.
Each batch of cheese matures for at least three months before our expert cheese grader tastes it. With our cheese maturing for up to two years, he tries up to 100 cheeses a week in his quest for perfection, checking each batch to see how it develops. Only when it reaches its peak, does it leave the farm.