One of the oldest recorded named cheeses in British history

Dense and crumbly, Cheshire is made using vegetarian rennet and usually with pasteurised cow’s milk, although some farmhouse Cheshires are made from unpasteurised milk.

The colour, texture and flavour of the cheese develop with ripening. Young Cheshire is firm, crumbly and white in colour. It is mild, milky and aromatic leaving behind a slightly tangy aftertaste on the palette. Sometimes, to add a different dimension to the cheese, annatto is added to the milk, which gives the cheese a deep shade of red orange, but little difference in taste. An aged Cheshire becomes more firm and darkens considerably. It is now a full-flavoured cheese yet with no hint of bitterness. Although still crumbly, the cheese turns dry with maturity.

Farmhouse Cheshires, in particular, are often cloth-wrapped.