CHEESEWIRE
news and views from the cheese counter
Cheesemongers up the innovation in the face of price increases By Patrick McGuigan
Cutting costs, changing suppliers and offering deals are among the tactics being deployed by UK cheesemongers as they battle huge increases in the price of artisan cheese. Wholesale cheese prices have increase by 20-30% since Christmas, according to retailers, as milk, energy and fuel costs soar. The farm-gate price for milk was close to 50p a litre at the beginning of August, up from 29p a year ago, due to the rocketing cost of fuel, fertiliser and feed with cheesemakers and wholesalers forced to pass on the increases. While retailers have also increased their prices, they are also
tempering the impact in other ways. Gemma Williams at The Little Cheesemonger in Wales has taken drastic action to cut costs, including closing her first shop in Rhuddlan. “Customers just aren’t driving to rural shops like they used to, for obvious reasons,” she said. She has also mothballed her maturing room to conserve energy and on very hot days even switches off the serveover counter in her remaining Prestatyn store for the same reason, transferring cheeses to another display fridge, and using the counter for ambient display. “On closing, I use extra insulation on my multi-deck fridge to hold the temperature
Retailers have had to try new ideas to shift stock from their counters
more efficiently over night,” she said. At Cheese Etc in Pangbourne, Berkshire, coowner Jen Grimstone-Jones is shopping around to get the best price on cheese, buying direct from cheesemakers if possible. “Where I have to buy through a wholesaler I try to buy from those based in the area where the cheeses are made. They tend to be able to offer their local cheeses at the best prices.” Paxton & Whitfield has also introduced measures to support customers, with free delivery for online purchases over £30, plus a £30 ‘ripe and ready’ box that is lower in price than the standard retail price. It will also introduce a more accessibly priced cheese subscription for Christmas 2022 at £85 for three months and is planning to list new cheeses at more accessible prices. At George & Joseph in Leeds, owner Stephen Fleming has launched a new deal – three 100g pieces of cheese and a bottle of wine for £20. “We’ve noticed that average spend is down, but customer numbers are the same, so ideas like this help to give sales a lift,” he said.
NEWS IN BRIEF Shepherds Purse has renamed its Feta-style cheese as Mrs Bell’s Salad Cheese. Originally called Yorkshire Feta and then Yorkshire Fettle, the cheese has been rebranded for a second time after pressure from the Greek government. Kirkham’s Lancashire won the James Aldridge Memorial Trophy for best British raw milk cheese at the Specialist Cheesemakers Association’s annual farm visit. King Stone Dairy’s Ashcombe won the Patron’s Award for the Best Artisan Cheese of the Year. The Cheese Cellar Dairy in Worcestershire, part of Harvey & Brockless, has launched two cheeses. Greta is a cows’ curd, in basiland garlic-infused oil. Delilah is a pyramidshaped, triple-cream cheese, topped with pink peppercorns.
Preston-based cheese wholesaler The Crafty Cheese Man has teamed up with a local brewer to create a beer that is the ultimate match for cheese. It Ain’t Easy Bein’ Cheesy, made by Farm Yard Brew Co in Lancaster, is a 9.5% demerara sugar & sea salt stout, which is aged in Rioja barrels for six months.
THREE WAYS WITH...
Gert Lush
This new Camembert-style cheese from Felthams Farm in Somerset takes its name from a West Country phrase that translates loosely as ‘very lovely’. Made with organic, pasteurised cows’ milk, it has a bloomy white coat and a soft golden paste. It is buttery and mushroomy with a slightly herbaceous note.
Pumpkin Soda Summerhouse Drinks in Aberdeenshire has recently developed this sparkling soft drink made with pumpkins, cinnamon and nutmeg, which is sweet and savoury with a spicy, floral edge. It works well with blues, but is even better with mould-ripened cheeses. The perfumed flavour adds another layer to the savoury notes of Gert Lush, while the bubbles break up the creaminess. Golden kimchi The fermented tang of sauerkrauts and spicy kimchis are a sure-fire match for cheeses with a bit of funk, but Gert Lush needs something a little lighter. Golden Kimchi from Londonbased Eaten Alive is just the ticket. Made with turmeric, preserved lemons and ginger, it has a refreshing, fragrant quality that brings out something similar in the cheese. The contrast in colours between the two is an added bonus. Roasted grapes Like Camembert, Gert Lush can be baked in the oven until it is molten and dunkable. Drizzle some black grapes with olive oil and balsamic and then roast for 10-20 minutes at the same time until they start to split, and you have a perfect accompaniment. You can even load them on top of the melted cheese so they become part of the dish. The sweet, sharp, juicy grapes provide a refreshing counterpoint to the earthy cheese. Vol.23 Issue 7 | August 2022
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