Speciality Food January 2024

specialityfoodmagazine.com 27 “Collaboration is the key to success” W hat a whirlwind year 2023 was in the world of cheese. I have been inspired beyond belief by the passion and dedication of so many mongers and makers. My last outing was to the World Cheese Awards in Trondheim, Norway. This was probably the largest collection of different cheeses that had ever been in one room together. The smells coming from the room totally overwhelmed me with joy. What a brilliant competition, with some fabulous cheese. As a shopkeeper, market trader and cheesemonger I am nervously anticipating what 2024 has in store for my business. Interest rates have hit the independent world badly, with businesses forced to close. And utility price hikes have caused so much trouble, independents are having to make drastic decisions - the worst of which is making staff redundant. At No2 we are having to constantly think out of the box to create unique sales and marketing opportunities. This month I thought to share one of those ideas with you as I truly believe collaboration on all levels as small businesses is essential to safeguarding our futures. It gives me so much pleasure to be able to meet cheesemakers and cheese people, to learn more about their work. The stories and learnings inspire me and my team to create unique tastings for our customers. We hosted one such event last November. In October I’d attended Chiswick Cheese Market and was asked to participate in Tastes of The Unexpected. The idea behind this was to find the most perfect and seamless pairing of cheese with a unique JAMES GRANT NO2 POUND STREET drink or condiment. When I was contacted by Lucy from the market, I jumped at the chance to join in. I immediately said that I would enter Stichelton and pair it with a different sweet wine. Lucy recommended an ice cider, which I thought would be just perfect. The big day arrived, and I was up against some stiff competition, including the lovely Emma Young AKA The Cheese Explorer, Perry Wakeman from Rennet & Rind, and several others. We had a packed room of cheese lovers and the competition started. Emma’s sparkling with Vacherin was a treat. Perry had Sinodun Hill goats’ cheese with fizzy cola bottles, which was unique and worked. There was vodka and sake. All the pairings were very innovative and so much fun. However there had to be one winner and that was Stichelton and ice cider. This was seamless - we all savoured the moment. The audience clearly agreed, and No2 won the silver cheese knife. From this experience I decided to host the unexpected pairing at No2 online with cheesemakers Stichelton in Nottinghamshire and the wonderful team at Sandford Orchard in Devon. Justin, our cheesemonger, had done a make at Stichelton with Joe Schneider and had a brilliant time. It was a no-brainer to ask if Joe would like to be part of the tasting. I invited Sandford because of a recommendation from ‘the godmother of cheese’, Mary Quicke. Additionally, having met The Young Cheese Monger 2023 – Lily Morris, I thought to invite her to the panel. The show was perfect, and created via collaborations through networking and supporting each other in business. Let 2024 be the time that independents work with each other to support, promote, and engage our audiences. We have the knowledge, passion, and drive to deliver the best cheese, and 2024 is going to be the year to shout this from the rooftops. We have endured poor quality, inferior mass production for too long and we need to re-engage our communities with the facts about our cheese choices and all the benefits that they bring. It givesme somuch pleasure to be able tomeet cheesemakers and cheese people, to learnmore about their work. The stories and learnings inspire me andmy teamto create unique tastings for our customers Shockwaves rattled the British cheesemaking industry last year with the announcement that Berkswell, one of the nation’s most respected sheep’s milk cheeses, would no longer be produced. Cheese consultant SamWilkins, who worked with the cheese’s makers, the Fletcher family at Ram Hall Dairy in the West Midlands, said it was incredibly sad to say goodbye to the product. “They’d beenmaking it for the last 35 years, but the family had been on that farm since the 1880s, so it was multi-generational. It’s the same story for many tenant farmers. Things are very tough for small businesses, and it’s been very up and down, but over the last few years Brexit and Covid have had a massive impact.” Having made the decision to wind downmaking Berkswell, the Fletchers then had the daunting task of figuring out what to do with their cheese vats, cheese maturing shelves and, more importantly, their sheep. “There aren’t many flocks in the UK bred to produce great milk for cheesemaking,” explained Sam. “There’s a real quality there and years and years of husbandry have gone into that flock.” Thankfully Blacklion Vodka, based in the Cotswolds, came to the rescue. “Stephen (Fletcher) had been selling Cotswold vodka brand saves Berkswell flock a little bit of whey to them, to make their sheep’s whey vodka, which I think was a first in Europe and doing really well on export. They wanted to carry onmaking that product. And David at King Stone Dairy, many years ago in his career, had done a stage at RamHall Dairy. He was approached and asked, if they continued to produce the milk, could he make a cheese. David, being David, said yes!” Once the ewes had dried off, they were transported to their new home, at Blacklion Farm, where they will continue to be cared for by Stephen. Their last few hundred litres of milk was placed in David’s hands, and a brand-new cheese, Bibury (named for a Cotswold village) will soon be available. “We did a tasting a fewmonths ago and it was amazing,” said Sam. “With almost those caramelised, roast lamb fat flavours and a lovely floral note you always expect from sheep’s milk cheese.” David will be pressing the cheese, with Sam likening it in style to an Ossau-Iraty. “I’m quite excited about the potential for it,” he said. “It’s really delicious, and there’s definitely room in themarket for it - other sheep’s milk cheesemakers have seen an uptick in demand recently. The first batches should be available soon, then we’ll be looking at starting up again at Easter time once the lambing season is over.”