Fantastic four Christmas cheeseboard

Cheeseboard

This fabulous country of ours has in recent years seen a renaissance with farmhouse cheeses with literally hundreds of new cheese makers emerging and raising the bar on delectable dairy.

To differentiate quality handmade cheese from mass produced, you need simply to look at the description on the label.

If it says ‘’Creamery’ the milk is gathered from anywhere across the country and blended together.

Farmhouse cheese is made traditionally on the farm usually from the owner's herd.

This is how you get regional differences in the tastes of cheese. In fact, a farmhouse cheese that is made in summer with the cows grazing on grass will be totally different to a winter made cheese when the herd graze on sweeter silage.

This cheeseboard recommendation comes from the two rosette, Freemasons at Wiswell. Run and owned by Chef/patron Stephen Smith, it has just been voted the Number one pub in the Sunday Times 'Good Food Guide 2015’.

Following on from a stellar two course meal of crispy egg with beef broth followed by a succulent beef bourginnon with truffle oil, I opted for the cheese board.

Shorrocks Lancashire Bomb

The Shorrocks family have been producing cheese since 1923. This Lancashire is matured for 24 months offering a creamy textured full strength cheese. It is covered in muslin cloth and dipped black wax.The wax seals the cheese from the air keeping these cheese fresh for up to a year.

Golden Cross goats cheese

Award winning cheesemakers since 1989, this mould ripened cheese is made daily on the farm from unpasteurised milk from their own herd. Coated in charcoal, the cheese log becomes denser and fuller flavoured as it matures.

Tunworth, Camembert style cheese

Made by the Hampshire Cheese company and a previous Supreme Champion and Gold Award winner at the British Cheese Awards, this deliciously nutty, sweet milky cheese rivals some of the best the French have to offer.

Port marinated Stilton

This cheese was a creation of Head chef Stephen Smith but I feel it would be relatively easy to recreate.

I didn't get the recipe from the chef but my guess would be a quality Stilton, try Colton Basset. Add a few lugs of port and gently blend together. Let it sit for a few hours in the fridge. Taking out half an hour before serving. The one I tried was sublime.

A very patriotic British cheeseboard. 

Food & Wine by Paul Sheerin
Pshearse@gmail.com