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Renegade Monk will scale up at new Somerset facility
BEHIND THE COUNTER TIPS OF THE TRADE BILL DE LA HEY, Mainstreet Trading, St Boswells, Scottish Borders
By Patrick McGuigan
The pungent aroma of Renegade Monk is set to waft further across the UK after Somerset start-up Feltham’s Farm revealed plans to boost output of its washed rind cheese. The company is building a new dairy at its 22-acre smallholding near Wincanton, which will see capacity increase fivefold. Owner Marcus Fergusson currently makes around 200 of the 250g cheeses a week in a 200-litre vat, but will upgrade to a 1,000-litre vat at the new-build £250k dairy, which has been part-funded with a LEADER grant. It will also house a new pasteuriser, maturing rooms and a mezzanine viewing gallery. Fergusson previously worked in corporate communications in London, but gave it up to make cheese last year. Renegade Monk is a soft cheese, made with organic, pasteurised cows’ milk from Bruton Organic Dairy, which is inoculated with blue mould and washed in Funky Monkey
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Shropshire Blue
Feltham Farm will be able to make more of its hybrid blue/washed rind Renegade Monk
ale from Milk Street Brewery in Frome. “I wanted to make a cheese that stood out.� said Fergusson. “Renegade Monk is a hybrid, so it’s a homage to the stinky French cheeses you don’t see so often over here, but it also has a blue twist. “ The cheese sells at local farmers’ markets and to around 20 retailers in the region, as
is that it did not actually originate in Shropshire. According to some, the blue FKHHVH ZDV ƓUVW GHYHORSHG by a Cheshire cheese grader called Dennis Biggins in the 1930s. Others say it was the brainchild of a cheesemaker at Castle Stuart Dairy in ,QYHUQHVV ZKR LQ adapted a Stilton recipe by adding annatto to give it a sunset orange colour. What we do know is that Stilton makers eventually adopted the cheese as their own with production focussed in the East Midlands, although it is also now made in Shropshire and other counties as well. Milk: Cows’, unpasteurised
What’s the story? There’s a certain amount of disagreement about when and where Shropshire %OXH ZDV ƓUVW LQYHQWHG EXW what can be said for certain 28
How is it made? Shropshire Blue is made in the same way as Blue Stilton with the addition of annatto – a natural colouring from the pulp around the seeds of the South American Achiote
September 2018 | Vol.19 Issue 8
well as through wholesalers, including Longman’s and The Fine Cheese Co. A sister cheese called Rebel Nun, matured to be slightly drier and bluer, has recently been developed and Fergusson plans to launch more “hybrid� cheeses influenced by Continental classics, once production starts in November.
From Top of the Pops to the World’s 50 Best Restaurants, Brits love a list, which is why Mainstreet Trading’s wooden sign highlighting the “Top 10 Cheesesâ€? in the counter is so popular. “We sell about 40 cheeses and people can be a little bit fazed by the range when they Ć“UVW FRPH LQ Ĺ? VD\V %LOO GH OD +H\ ZKR FR RZQV the St Boswells book shop, cafĂŠ and deli with wife Rosamund. “The list is a good point of conversation. People always want to know more about the number one cheese.â€? The list changes once a week, highlighting FXUUHQW EHVW VHOOHUV VWDII IDYRXULWHV RU D WKHPH such as home nation cheeses during the rugby. An adjacent blackboard gives more details about the top ‘cheese of the week’ and who makes it. “We’ve got some talented artists on the team so we often include an illustration as ZHOO Ĺ? VD\V GH OD +H\ Ĺ?,WĹ?V DPD]LQJ KRZ RIWHQ people ask about the list.â€?
ZHHNV Appearance & texture: $ ZKROH FKHHVH ZHLJKV 8 kg and is characterised by a natural rind, orange interior and spider’s web of blue veins. The texture is giving DQG HYHU VR FUXPEO\ ZLWK D ULFK DQG PHOORZ ŴDYRXU RI sweet dairy notes and gentle spice.
tree – which gives the cheese its deep orange colour. The annatto and blue mould Penicillium roqueforti is added at the beginning of the make, with the milk and starters. Milled curd is drained in cylindrical moulds IRU GD\V DQG WKH FKHHVH is then pierced with stainless VWHHO QHHGOHV DW ƓYH DQG VL[ weeks’ old to initiate the blue mould growth. The cheese is then matured for
Variations: 7\SLFDOO\ NJ WUXFNOHV Cropwell Bishop makes 225g waxed Shropshire Blues for Christmas. Cheesemonger tip: The distinctive orange curd with its blue vein patterning is a stunning addition to the cheese counter, display
the cut edge of half and quarter cheeses towards the customer for maximum impact. Recommend as a colourful addition to any cheeseboard or ploughman’s lunch. Delicious for daytime snacking: smeared onto a crisp stick of celery, crumbled on to salads or melted in soup. Chef’s recommendation: Use instead of Stilton to add colour to recipes. Top burgers with it or mix into minced meat for cheesy meatballs. Recommended with Port when serving on a cheeseboard or a brown ale for lighter meals.
Whether you have a professional or personal interest in cheese, the Academy of Cheese is D QRW IRU SURĆ“W RUJDQLVDWLRQ SURYLGLQJ D FRPSUHKHQVLYH LQGXVWU\ UHFRJQLVHG FHUWLĆ“FDWLRQ /HYHO 2QH FRXUVHV DUH available across the UK visit academyofcheese.org to VWDUW \RXU MRXUQH\ WR 0DVWHU RI &KHHVH