Steve and Caroline Ward bring you choice fromages…
During the first week of December, our Stilton delivery arrives. A pallet load, 150 kilos, there or thereabouts. Every year we get that same feeling of dread: where are we going to put this? How are we ever going to sell it all? But come Christmas eve we’ll be lucky if we get to take any home.
The Colston Bassett dairy is one of only a handful allowed to produce Stilton under the PDO (protected Designated Origin) rules.
They collect milk from dairy farms just outside of Nottingham to produce the finest, creamiest, crumbliest Stilton available anywhere. Always with plenty of blue veining and it is never ‘waxy’ or bitter like some of the cheaper ones can be. As a relatively small producer they also only deal with independent shops and not supermarkets.
Stilton is a Christmas ‘must have’ in the same way as mince pies and turkey are, so don’t skimp on it. Get yourself a big chunk of the best – ask for Colston Bassett.
Mrs Cheese likes to stoke the fire and relax in her slippers and evening gown to enjoy her Stilton. And, as a true Englishman (!), she won’t entertain anything less than a tumbler of vintage Port to wash it down with. Is Oliver Twist on this year?
