All right, but apart from the sanitation, medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, the fresh water system and public health, what have the Romans ever done for us?
Brought peace?
Oh, peace – shut up!!
Turns out the Romans also introduced rennet to the British Isles in the first century AD, which enabled harder, longer lasting cheeses to be made. All of us cheese lovin’ Wisconsinites can tip our cheddar hats to them.
We had a whole morning filled with British cheese history and tastings a few weeks back, and I have to say, I was shocked. I had no idea that there were so many fantastic cheeses being made in jolly ‘ole! Our instructor, Juliet Narbutt, literally wrote the book on world cheese, and we learned a heck of a lot. So, tuck in for a long, historical, cheese ride as I summarize the highlights from her class here!
*It was the arrival of William the Conqueror in 1066, and the Cistercian monks from Burgundy who accompanied his army, that set the scene for Britain’s great traditional cheeses. The monks taught the farmers how to manage their lands, animals … and the shepherds of Yorkshire how to make ewes milk cheeses. The recipes were handed down over generations by word of mouth and instruction and today they form the basis of the cheeses of the dales.
*During the reign of Henry VIII monks were forced to find employment elsewhere, and gradually their dairy and cheesemaking skills spread across the country. Sheep were slowly replaced my cattle whose yield was 3-times greater, and soon every county had its own cheese.
*The types of English cheese as they exist today were broadly established by the early 1700’s when cheeses were shipped from ports around Britain, carried by coach or packed on barges and transported up and down the country. Factors in the 19th century lead to the near extinction of these great cheeses: the first was a cattle epidemic in 1960 when thousands of cows were slaughtered and tons of mass-produced American cheddar had to be imported, paving the way for industrialization of the cheese industry. The advent of the railway actually turned out to be another retrograde step for farmhouse cheeses in Britain since milk could suddenly be delivered from farm to city quickly and the need to preserve milk by converting it to cheese was no longer necessary.
*WWII devastated the cheese industry. With few men to run the farms and severe food shortages, the powerful Ministry of Food ruled that all milk produced, that normally would have been used to make many different kinds of cheeses, went instead to factories to be made into a single cheddar-like “National Cheese.” Nationalization all but crushed the industry, with fewer than 100 independent British cheesemakers still in business by 1945, compared to more than 1,500 prior to the war. Traditional character of many cheeses was lost and the lovely round cloth bound cheeses were replaced by factory-made blocks matured in plastic.
*The last 25 years has seen a cheese revolution! Old methods revived, rare breeds reintroduced, old recipes dragged from attics, libraries, and bookshelves … ewe and goats milk cheeses making their way back into the market. Today Britain can boast around 210 artisan producers making 750 unique cheeses.
The problem is that, unlike in France where hundreds of small cheesemakers make the same cheese, each of the wonderful British cheeses are made by one individual cheesemaker. That means they are often found only in the region where they are made or in specialty cheese shops. This can certainly lead to frustration when trying to buy British cheese, see here: The Cheese Shop Sketch.
Now for the tasting … Traditional British cheeses can be divided into 3 main categories 1) The Hard Territorials: this includes Cheddars (the first two samples on the plate below), the Gloucesters (double and single), red Leicester (sample 8 below), White Stilton and Derby Derbyshire. Cheddar is made all over Britain. Unfortunately the Brits did not protect the culinary history of the cheese and it is copied the world over, especially in countries settled by British immigrants, and of course the US. However, we learned that it is not truly “Cheddar” unless it comes from the green hills that are England, and more specifically, Dorset, Devon and Somerset. Interesting. There are currently 5 Cheddar makers in the UK and the samples we tasted were divine – delicious and strong, with a bite like chocolate, firm yet yielding. The aroma was fresh, nutty, buttery. Differing flavors depending on the farm, but predominantly sweet and milky, with a classic acid tang. Note the color … Not at all orange. Why is Wisconsin cheddar orange? Because they dye the milk that way. Its true. The color comes from the South American Annatto seed, which gives Wisconsin cheddar that pumpkin orange hue. Mind. Blown. 
2) The Crumblies: These are Caerphilly (sample 3. The only traditional Welsh cheese, most made in Somerset now), Cheshire, Wensleydale (sample 4, only 3 makers in Britain), and Lancashire (sample 5, which can be either young/creamy or mature/tasty depending on the length of aging). Unlike the hard territorials these cheeses have a higher moisture content and are crumbly in texture. The flavor is fresh, clean and grassy, firm yet moist, elastic… the Wensleydale had an especially sweet, wild honey flavor that was absolutely addictive.
3) Blue cheeses: Stilton (sample 6.) and Blue Vinney. There are currently only 6 producers of Stilton. It takes 136 pints of milk to make one 17lb Stilton cheese an over 1 million are made each year! In 1910 the Stilton Makers Association registered Stilton as a trade mark and stated it could only be produced in 3 counties, which probably saved it from mediocrity or even extinction, the fate of most of Britain’s other fine territorial cheeses. Unlike Italian blues that are sharper and wetter, Stilton is dry on the outside, smooth, buttery, creamy on the inside. It mellows with age, unlike other blues.
The rest of the samples we tasted are the so called Modern British cheeses. There are 750 or more new cheese varieties being made across Britain today. They range from tiny fresh goat cheeses to blue buffalo cheese and are created using new ideas, new recipes, or adapting traditional recipes to new shapes, sizes, often using goat, ewe, or even buffalo milk.
Overwhelmed by all this cheese? Wondering how you will ever choose the perfect artisan cheeses for your next party platter? I’ve got you covered: Juliet categorizes cheeses into 7 groupings making it super easy to assemble a diverse selection that will cover all the bases for any occasion. Here are the categories and a few examples of each! You are so welcome!
Fresh (ricotta, mozzarella) Aged Fresh (St. Maure, Sancerre) Soft White Rind (Camembert, Brie) Semi-Soft (Edam, Reblochon, Taleggio) Hard (Cheddar, Pecorino, Gruyere, Manchego) Blue (Stilton, Gorgonzola, Roquefort) and lastly, Flavor Added (Pecorino with truffles, Gouda with cumin.)
It’s cheese that makes the world go round!
Incredibly interesting! Brava!
“I’m just crackers about cheese!” – Wallace and Gromit
I read somewhere that the Wallace and Gromit movies of the 1990’s (with Wensleydale being one of their professed favorites) revived the sagging Wensleydale cheese industry in England.
Oh I need to write Juliet and tell her this … she’ll love it. And I loved the Wensleydale! Perhaps a cheese trip to Britain is in order?!!