Cheshire Cheese is the Oldest Cheese Made in Britain! (2024)

The Oldest Cheese Made in Britain

Cheshire Cheese is the Oldest Cheese Made in Britain! (1)

Taste a slice of Cheshire Cheese and you will grin like the Cheshire Cat! A favorite of the British Navy, it will be one of your favorites too!

"Cheshire is not only the most literary cheesein England, but the oldest. It was already manufactured when Caesarconquered Britain, and tradition is that the Romansbuilt the walled city of Chester to control the district where theprecious cheese was made.

Cheshire Cheese is the Oldest Cheese Made in Britain! (2)

Cheshire first came to fame with The Old Cheshire Cheese Innin Elizabethan times and waxed great with Samuel Johnson presiding atthe Fleet Street Inn where White Cheshire was served "with radishes orwatercress or celery when in season," and "Red Cheshire was servedtoasted or stewed in a sort of Welsh Rabbit."

The Blue Variety is called Cheshire-Stilton, and Vyvyan Holland, in Cheddar Gorge suggests that:

Cheshire Cheese is the Oldest Cheese Made in Britain! (3)

"it was no doubt a cheese of this sort, discovered and filched from thelarder of the Queen of Hearts, that accounted for the contented grin onthe face of the Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland." (credit: The Complete Book of Cheese by Robert Carlton Brown via Project Gutenberg's eBook)

It has long been one of England's favorite cheeses. In fact the Royal Navy always stocks its ships with a plentiful supply. Farmhouse Cheshire cheese is always madefrom RAW (unpasteurized) cow's milk, and while true Farmhouse Cheshire (which is the Cheshirecheese you want to purchase) must be made from milk produced by theFriesian cattle in the Cheshire area...the color, size, shape and agingare not regulated.

Usually Cheshire is formed into cloth-wrappeddrums which are 14 inches high with a diameter of 7-8 inches, weighingabout 15 lbs. The drums are aged for 6 months up to a year. It isimportant that you seek out Genuine FarmhouseCheshire which will always be stamped with the number of thefarm where it was produced, the date it was made and a quality gradingof either 'fine' or 'superfine'. It will bewrapped in cloth; it will rarely be waxed over the cloth.

The very best of the Farmhouse Cheshire is made by the Appleby family of Hawkstone Abbey Farm.

Cheshire Cheese is the Oldest Cheese Made in Britain! (4)

Other fine Cheshires are made by the Bourne family (The Bank brand) and some waxed Cheshires by Mollington Grange and Chorlton Lodge. Flavor-wise, Cheshire is rustic, not too strong, buttery and mild with a slighty salty, quintessentially cheesy flavor. (The soil in the Cheshirebasin area has an underlying layer of bedrock salt which contributes toits distinctive flavor.) It is a dry cheese with an pale orangecolor since it is organically dyed with annatto. The texture of Cheshire is a bit drier than Cheddar, but it is crumbly likeCheddar.

HOMEBritish Cheese›Cheshire Cheese

Cheshire Cheese is the Oldest Cheese Made in Britain! (5)

Looking for something specific on GourmetCheeseDetective.com?

Enter your request below:

Follow The Gourmet Cheese Detective on Twitter: @The_Cheese_Tec


Cheshire Cheese is the Oldest Cheese Made in Britain! (2024)

FAQs

Is Cheshire Cheese the oldest cheese? ›

Cheshire is in fact Britain's oldest cheese, having been made since before Roman times. It was recorded in the Doomsday Book of 1086.

What is the oldest cheese in the UK? ›

Appleby's Cheshire is the UK's oldest cheese on record, first appearing in the Doomsday Book in 1086, by order of William the Conqueror and is the only unpasteurised Cheshire still produced in the UK.

What is the oldest cheese ever made? ›

In 2018, archeologists from Cairo University and the University of Catania reported the discovery of the oldest known cheese from Egypt. Discovered in the Saqqara necropolis, it is around 3200 years old. Earlier, remains identified as cheese were found in the funeral meal in an Egyptian tomb dating around 2900 BC.

Why is Cheshire Cheese hard to find? ›

Cheshire Cheese experienced competition with other farmhouse cheeses. Popularity decreased during the last century and demands to change the texture of the cheese during wartime further reduced the number of producers. It can be difficult to find the different cheese varieties.

Is Cheshire cheese still made? ›

Today there are only 2 versions of Cheshire Cheese to be made on the farm in the traditional and time-honoured way, the rest being made by large scale dairies.

What food is Cheshire famous for? ›

Not in geography, nor in climate, but in that whenever people are asked to think of a food from these counties, they can usually only think of one thing. And in Cheshire, that is cheese. First officially recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 but made since Roman times, Cheshire Cheese is Britain's oldest named cheese.

What is the King of cheese UK? ›

Stilton, the King of Cheeses.

What is the King of cheese England? ›

For two centuries, Stilton has been known as the King of English Cheese, and it has never been copied elsewhere.

What is the most expensive cheese in the world? ›

That honor goes to pule cheese (or magareći sir), a rare cheese produced in Zasavica Donkey Reserve in west central Serbia. The price? Around $600 a pound.

Is cheese unhealthy for you? ›

REALITY. You don't have to cut cheese out of your diet, but if you have high cholesterol or blood pressure, use high-fat cheeses sparingly. A 30g portion of cheese provides seven per cent of your daily calories and there can be more salt in a portion of cheddar than in a packet of crisps.

What is cheese slang for? ›

Cheese is HEROIN. Cheese is black tar heroin mixed with crushed Tylenol PM tablets. This drug has been identified in several DISD middle schools and high schools. Cheese represents approximately 37% of total drug usage by students.

How old is Cheshire cheese? ›

Cheshire cheese is one of the oldest recorded named cheeses in British history: it is first mentioned, along with a Shropshire cheese, by Thomas Muffet in Health's Improvement (c. 1580).

How long does Cheshire cheese last in the fridge? ›

Most of our cheese will last up to 3 months if kept in the fridge.

How do you eat Cheshire cheese? ›

Toast bread on one side in a preheated grill, until golden. Baste the untoasted bread slices with the remaining butter, place roasted peppers and grated Cheshire cheese on bread slices. Grill until cheese is slightly golden and melted,sprinkle dried parsley, and serve hot.

How old is Ye Olde Cheshire cheese? ›

Originally, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese was built in the 1530's, although the original pub was lost in The Great Fire of London in 1666. The current pub dates from 1667 – having been one of the first London buildings reconstructed after the Great Fire.

What is the oldest cheese shop in America? ›

Alleva Dairy | America's Oldest Cheese Shop Established 1892.

What is the oldest Scottish cheese? ›

Caboc is Scotland's oldest cheese, dating from the 15th century in the Scottish Highlands. The cheese was first made by Mariota de Ile, the daughter of the chieftain of the Clan MacDonald of the Isles.

What happened to the Cheshire Mammoth cheese? ›

Apocryphal accounts assert that the last of it was served at a presidential reception in 1805, or that it was dumped in the Potomac at some date unknown.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Greg Kuvalis

Last Updated:

Views: 6459

Rating: 4.4 / 5 (55 voted)

Reviews: 86% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Greg Kuvalis

Birthday: 1996-12-20

Address: 53157 Trantow Inlet, Townemouth, FL 92564-0267

Phone: +68218650356656

Job: IT Representative

Hobby: Knitting, Amateur radio, Skiing, Running, Mountain biking, Slacklining, Electronics

Introduction: My name is Greg Kuvalis, I am a witty, spotless, beautiful, charming, delightful, thankful, beautiful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.