Selling cheese, made by small, artisan producers, who work with great skill, dedication and enthusiasm, has always been both a privilege and a pleasure. Now it feels like a responsibility too.

Fresh off the heels of International Women’s day, we wanted to take a moment to celebrate the enormous contribution made to our industry by talented women. Our founder, Ann-Marie Dyas, was one such woman, whose enduring legacy is one of championing traditional, artisan cheesemaking. That is, cheeses that are made by hand. Cheeses made by small and independent producers. Producers who labour for the love of their craft, and not to mass-produce something that might net more profit. The result is something of quality, cheese that has depth and complexity and that is a far more rewarding experience on the cheeseboard, in terms of both flavour and texture. We think that is something worth celebrating.

It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to Mary Holbrook, the maker of the incomparable Tymsboro cheese, who passed away at the weekend.

She died at home on Sunday, at her beautiful farm on the hill, in Somerset, where she has worked tirelessly over decades to establish and maintain her world-class reputation.

Mary has had an impact on a staggering amount of people in the artisan cheese industry in the UK and beyond. She welcomed trainees, visitors and transient workers to come to Sleight farm and learn, work and contribute to the cheese making and the farm; people from customers like ourselves, other cheesemakers and the wider food community. Never shy to let people see her process and learn from her techniques, safe in the knowledge that no-one could recreate the exceptional terroir of her Somerset hilltop. Our Technical Manager, Martin, had the privilege to work for Mary for two years and learned a huge amount from her. He says "The way she made cheese was unique in my experience.

Marcus Fergusson and his cheese, the aptly named 'Renegade Monk'

Cheesemakers are like their cheeses: they’re supposed to take time to mature and fully develop.

Marcus Fergusson, of Feltham’s Farm Cheeses, is a fascinating character, as he doesn’t quite fit this mould. Like his cheese, he is something of a renegade. He’s prodigiously talented and far more comfortable taking risks than a cheesemaker of his experience has any right to be. He’s also disarmingly open and honest about his journey to get to where he is today, both on his blog (which is excellent) and in person.

I’m always excited about trying a cheese when it's made a certain name for itself. One of the reviews that Marcus proudly displays on his website describes Renegade Monk as, ‘a vicious little cheese’. It certainly has an edge to it. It’s pungent and moody, a bit like a surly teenager. You can imagine it spending a lot of time listening to Linkin Park and complaining about being misunderstood. It would be easy to understand

James and George Keen

‘I believe that what we become depends on what our fathers teach us at odd moments, when they aren't trying to teach us. We are formed by little scraps of wisdom.’
Umberto Eco

Cheesemakers obsess over the smallest of details, in order to perfect that taste they are seeking. Over the years, a cheesemaker will build up a laundry list of tips and make-notes.
This Father’s day, we took a moment to celebrate a few of the father-son teams in artisan cheesemaking. In many cases, traditional cheeses have stayed within one family for generations, allowing the knowledge, the cheese and the ‘little scraps of wisdom’ to stay on the same farm as one cheesemaker passes the torch to another. Whether they are perfecting existing recipes, or laying the groundwork for the creation of breathtaking new cheeses, fans of cheese everywhere owe a lot to these father and son teams.
George and James Keen are one such team. The Keen’s have been making traditional, artisan raw-milk Cheddar

Women have long held a place at the heart of traditional cheesemaking. In the very early days of British cheese, monasteries were important centres of production. With their dissolution by Henry VIII in 1560, recipes often passed to the local farmers' wives, broadening the styles of cheese to be found on British farms.

There is a long tradition of the women of the family taking control of the dairy, and making butter and cheese both to feed their family and to take to market. Women cheesemakers have played a key role in the resurgence of artisan British cheese and have inspired a new generation of women to take up this noble profession.

In homage to these wonderful women, we have created a selection called Sisters in Cheese, which celebrates the accomplishments of four great women cheesemakers who have revived lost cheeses or created new classics.

Do cheeses have a gender?

It wasn't easy to choose just four, in fact, so great is the choice of cheeses made by women that, when talking to