Cheshire Cheese - History

History

Cheshire cheese is one of the oldest recorded named cheeses in British history: it is first mentioned, along with Shropshire, by Thomas Muffet in Health's Improvement (c. 1580). Indeed, Cheshire cheese is Britain's oldest cheese. There is no earlier specific mention of the cheese of the county, but the importance of Cheshire as one of the main dairy regions of England is already emphasised by William of Malmesbury in the Chester section of his Gesta pontificum Anglorum ("History of the bishops of England": c. 1125). The claim that Cheshire cheese is referred to in Domesday Book has become widespread but it is "nonsense".

Cheshire was the most popular cheese on the market in the late 18th century. In 1758 the Royal Navy ordered that ships be stocked with Cheshire and Gloucester cheeses. By 1823, Cheshire cheese production was estimated at 10,000 tonnes per year; in around 1870, it was estimated as 12,000 tons per year.

Until the late 19th century, the different varieties of Cheshire cheeses were aged to a sufficient level of hardness to withstand the rigours of transport (by horse and cart, and later by boat) to London for sale. Younger, fresher, crumbly cheese that required shorter storage — similar to the Cheshire cheese of today — began to gain popularity towards the end of the 19th century, particularly in the industrial areas in the North and the Midlands. It was a cheaper cheese to make as it required less storage.

Sales of Cheshire cheese peaked at around 40,000 tonnes in 1960, subsequently declining as the range of cheeses available in the UK grew considerably. Cheshire cheese remains the UK's largest-selling crumbly cheese, with sales of around 6,500 tonnes per year.

The county remains an important centre for cheese and holds the Nantwich International Cheese Awards.