Biography
Cheddar is one of the most well-known cheeses. Read about its journey from the Cheddar Caves in Somerset to mass-production and world domination!
The Basics
The most well-known cheese in the world has achieved global recognition because versions of it are made all over the world. There is Irish, Canadian and New Zealand Cheddar, but it all stems from one small village, where the technique for making it first developed. Cheddar may not quite be England’s oldest known cheese (that honour belongs to Cheshire), but it was certainly known as far back as the 13th century, and is the style that the world took to its heart.
History of Cheddar
The English cheese that is named after a dramatic landscape in the West Country is probably the most well-known cheese in the world. Its name also denotes a particular part of the production process (“cheddaring”), and so popular a style has it been for centuries that it has been imitated throughout the world, but the original version comes from Somerset.
Making Cheddar
This account of classically made Cheddar is based on a visit that ICONS’ Stuart Walton made to the Cheddar Gorge Cheese Company, the only cheese producer left in Cheddar itself.
