Spotlight on Long Clawson Dairy

We’re really excited to be stocking Long Clawson Stilton for Xmas 2022. I recently visited Long Clawson (both the creamery and a local farm that supplies milk) before committing to...

We’re really excited to be stocking Long Clawson Stilton for Xmas 2022. I recently visited Long Clawson (both the creamery and a local farm that supplies milk) before committing to working with them this year, to learn more about not only their business and methods, but also their milk and farmers.

There are only 5 makers of Stilton in the world, much of this down to the strict PDOs that require all Stilton to be made not only traditionally, but also in the counties of Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire or Derbyshire. There is also a requirement that all of the milk be sourced from the same counties, unless the supply isn’t sufficient. What this can mean is that at Christmas, the busiest time of the year, milk is sourced from across the UK. However Long Clawson have the supply to ensure that the milk is local year round.


In fact, their milk is more than just local, all of the 30 farms that produce milk for Long Clawson are within 30 miles of the creamery. What’s more, every one of those farmers owns the business. This makes it one of only 2 Stilton makers that are co-operatives. This means that the interests of the business and the farmers are truly aligned, and ensures that the business isn’t run purely commercially, but also in the interests of sustainable and responsible farming.

Long Clawson formed in 1917 by 7 farmers, and the farm I visited in October is still owned by one of those founding families.

I was fascinated speaking to them about their farming practices and learning how they moved away from soy feed sourced from South America, and now source soy accredited as not contributing to deforestation. Use of soy at Long Clawson overall has been halved across the 30 farms from 12 to 6% of the feed. We very much hope this continues to fall over the coming years.

One of the main reasons I maintain such a close relationship with all of our cheesemakers, and visit them regularly, is to ensure they continue to pursue the most responsible practices that align with those of us at cheesegeek, and our customers.

Following the entire cheesemaking process, I was quite frankly stunned at the application of technology whilst ensuring that nothing is lost from the end product in terms of quality and craftsmanship.

Rich, the head cheesemaker has been at the business for 35 years now, spending over 20 of those as head cheesemaker. In fact, since Long Clawson formed, they have had only a handful of head cheesemakers. So how do you strike the balance between tradition, and technological advancement?

The best example of this was the curds. Hand-ladling curds is generally accepted as one of the most important elements of artisan cheesemaking, as it ensures the curds are treated as gently as possible, and they can retain the optimal flavour for producing fantastic cheese. Disrupted curds lead to sub-optimal cheese.

Hand-ladling however does impact scalability, which isn’t an issue for the vast majority of our cheesemakers who are small-scale by their nature, but certainly is for Stilton given its huge demand both within the UK and globally.

Long Clawson has addressed this issue by not having the curds ladled at all! They are not even touched between VAT and moulds. I won’t give away all their trade secrets but suffice to say the only way of treating curds more gently than by hand, is not at all!

Throughout the cheesemaking process, there is a clear theme that technology exists only to support the skill of the cheesemaker, and not to replace. And within that, advancement is overseen not by accountants and the board, but by cheesemakers themselves. This ensures that there is never a cost to quality. This was fully endorsed by Long Clawson winning the only Super Gold for a Whole Stilton at the 2021 World Cheese Awards, officially crowning it as the World’s Best Stilton.

Not only are we excited to be sending out such a great Stilton, our batches will also be the best of the best. This is because only the highest graded truckles, as assessed by Long Clawson’s master grader, will make it onto our shop. We will also be taking all the cheeses whole and cutting them fresh to order. So you simply won’t get it better anywhere else!

All in all, we’re delighted to be sending out Long Clawson Stilton this Christmas. An absolutely delicious, award-winning, traditional Stilton that would grace any Christmas cheeseboard.

Edward Hancock (founder of cheesegeek)

 

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October's seasonal cheese selection

Each month we curate 5 of the finest cheeses the UK has to offer. They highlight quality craftmanship, complex flavour profiles and form the backbone of our gifts and subscriptions.

1 of ProductListDrop
cheesegeek Bibury
Bibury
Semi hard

A sheep's milk cheese made with milk from the flock at Sheaf House Farm just up the road in Gloucestershire. Made only seasonally from late March, Bibury comes to life in Autumn. Classic notes of meadow flowers and hay along with white chocolate and a fondant texture that is very appealing.

 

cheesegeek Swift Reserve
Swift Reserve

3 total reviews

HARD

A scintillating 9-month aged gouda style cheese. 

If there was ever a Goldilocks gouda, then this is it. Just young enough to be supple, buttery, nutty sweet and unbelievably moreish, yet old enough to have developed a slightly weathered earthiness and rich complexity. We reckon this tastes like liberally buttered jacket potato skins. Oh, and finish is a joy to behold, long, sweet and delightful.

To top it off Swift Reserve pairs perfectly with coffee (yes, coffee). Transport yourself to the Med and enjoy a wedge of cheese with your morning caffeine. Keeping you fuller for longer and tasting shockingly good, it'll soon become part of your breakfast routine. Exclusive to cheesegeek.

Look out for the Swift Black coming soon to one of London's most exciting coffee specialists!

cheesegeek Quicke's Mature Cheddar
Quicke's Mature Cheddar
HARD

Mature, and not in a dull, doesn't like to leave the house way. Quicke's Mature is just fully developed. Quicke's the makers date back to 1540s so they know how to make goooood cheese. Handcrafted using grass-fed cow milk, this well rounded cheddar is typically matured for 12-18 months (hence the name) and brings you a variety of flavours from brothy to buttery to freshly mown grass and baked potato flavours. Always with the characteristic cheddar tang.

cheesegeek Washington
Washington

2 total reviews

SOFT

British cider-washed soft cheese

An unforgettable soft cheese, washed in cider. 

A testament to British cheesemaking, and a nod to continental cheesemaking. Washington is a washed rind cheese destined for great things. When slightly younger, the flavours are fresher and crisper, with just a hint of fruitiness. Ripened on, it develops deep, savoury, meaty flavour, a bit like those famous continental pongers like Epoisses. However, the cider wash brings an astonishing fermented fruity funk, balancing the savoury flavours perfectly, all playing out amidst the most tantalising creamy, decadent, luxurious texture. A modern take on history, and a cheese for the ages.

cheesegeek Perl Las
Cornish Blue
BLUE

Designed to be eaten as a young cheese, Cornish Blue is a very different product from traditional English blue cheeses. Its flavour is mild and creamy, with a dense texture and buttery richness, instead of the ‘salty tang’ common of other traditional blue cheeses it has a gentle sweetness.

November's seasonal cheese selection

Each month we curate 5 of the finest cheeses the UK has to offer. They highlight quality craftsmanship, complex flavour profiles and form the backbone of our gifts and subscriptions.

1 of ProductListDrop
cheesegeek 200g Rutland Red
Rutland Red
HARD

**Just voted 8th best cheese in World** One of the few remaining Red Leicester cheeses made in Leicestershire, Rutland Red is made in a special dedicated cheese room at Long Clawson Stilton makers. This beaut is so buttery and nutty sweet with a finish reminiscent of a creme brulee and a striking deep red colour that is unmistakable on a cheeseboard making it a firm favourite at cheesegeek. We're not the only ones to think so as Rutland Red just won 8th best cheese in the world (over 5,200 entries!) at the most prestigious 2025 World Cheese Awards. Red Leicester is a classic on any cheeseboard and is also one of our top picks to cook with, Cauliflower Cheese we're looking at you!!

cheesegeek Cornish Kern
Cornish Kern

6 total reviews

HARD

From Lynher Dairies, the makers of Cornish Yarg and Garlic Yarg, we welcome Cornish Kern—a stonker of a cheese. This beaut is off the chart with flavour. Encased in black wax, it is made in the style of a Gouda, however, the utilisation of Alpine starter cultures gives the cheese multiple dimensions. It has a real fruity twang, something like from an old sweet shop, except cheesy. Think exotic dried fruits, salted caramel, toasted hazelnuts and almonds, and although savoury, it simply tempts and teases you with a little bit of nutty buttery sweetness. All the flavours just linger beautifully in your mouth for the perfect amount of time. Its crumbly, crisp and slate-like texture simply arouses one's senses to another planet. An absolute worldy cheese....literally.

cheesegeek Burford
Burford
Semi hard

King Stone Dairy's longest aged, largest cheese. Originally conceived as a way to capture the sweet complexity of Summer pastures, Burford is now made year round and reflects the seasonality of the milk at Manor Farm. Flavours of charcuterie, hazelnut and hints of tropical fruit.

 

The Cheese Geek 250g Tunworth
Dozmary
SOFT

A bold soft cheese inspired by the wild beauty and legend of Bodmin Moor. Named after the mystical Dozmary Pool said to be the resting place of King Arthur’s Excalibur, it carries the same sense of drama and heritage.

It has been developed as a richer, more flavourful evolution of the Cornish Camembert, Dozmary is oozy, buttery, and bursting with character.

The Cheese Geek Cashel Blue
Crozier Blue
BLUE

Crozier Blue is an Irish sheep's milk cheese modelled loosely on a Roquefort, that has a rich, full and well-rounded flavour. It is gently salty with a distinctly rich creamy texture, offset by a touch of spice.

December's seasonal cheese selection

Each month we curate 5 of the finest cheeses the UK has to offer. They highlight quality craftsmanship, complex flavour profiles and form the backbone of our gifts and subscriptions.

1 of ProductListDrop
The Cheese Geek Old Roan Wensleydale
Yoredale

4 total reviews

Made at Curlew Dairy by husband and wife Ben & Sam, Yoredale (formerly Old Roan) represents one of the only truly traditional, raw milk Wensleydale cheeses still made in the UK. As well as being a stonker of a Wensleydale, we were rather captured by the Yoredale's journey. The milk travels a whole 5 metres (or 500cm) from milking parlour to processing room. Then, having been matured for 3-4 months it makes its way to you...via us! Unlike block Wensleydale, the manual, handmade, small batch nature of this traditional clothbound Wensleydale results in so much more complexity. It has the tell tale bite in the centre, but carries an incredible stoney, mineral earthiness closer to the rind, where you also start getting the most wonderful breakdown in the cheese. There are more hidden themes here than The Matrix, and it is a great nod to traditional cheesemaking

cheesegeek Lincolnshire Red
Lincolnshire Red
This beaut gives you everything a great Cheddar should, but on top of that, another layer of deep burnt butter, nutty happiness. It has an intense moist yet creamy texture, with a delicate and elegant buttery flavour that matches with a lingering clean flavour. Theres no denying that this Lincolnshire Red is a promising winner on any cheese board.
The Cheese Geek Keen's Cheddar
Keen's Cheddar

4 total reviews

Along with Westcombe, Pitchfork, and Montgomery’s, Keen's is one of the last traditional raw milk artisan Somerset Cheddars. This is due to the fact the criteria are so much stricter than those for West Country Farmhouse Cheddars. The production process uses raw untreated milk from their grass-fed herd, with pint starters rather than powder, traditional animal rennet, and a clothbound maturation of at least 12 months.

The result is a strong, tangy cheddar with a mellow depth of flavour, occasionally blueing throughout. A standout traditional cheddar that is keeping its place firmly in the classic cheese world.

cheesegeek Rollright
Rollright

26 total reviews

If Cheese = Xmas and Xmas = Vacherin then you could be forgiven for assuming Xmas would be cancelled this year due to LSD (not that one) and its impact on supply of Vacherin this year.

But fortunately, thanks to a lesser known but equally mighty British cheese called Rollright, Xmas might just be saved after all.Made in Gloucestershire, it is wrapped in spruce imported from the continent, just the same as is used on traditional Vacherin, and it is made with milk from a single herd of rare breed cows that actually feed on grass even through the winter.

It is great baked, equally great spooned, but crucially it will give you everything you've come to know and love about a Vacherin, and arguably more.

Rollright. Saving Christmas 2025

cheesegeek Long Clawson Stilton
Long Clawson Stilton

5 total reviews

The heavyweight of all cheeses, Santa's favourite cheese, and Christmas on a plate... it's Stilton.

After months of blind-taste tests, we settled on Long Clawson as our Stilton of choice. But don't just take our word for it, Long Clawson won Super Gold at the 2021 World Cheese Awards, effectively crowning it the World's Best Stilton.
With it's beautiful blue veins (yes we're calling them beautiful) and bold flavour, we're so glad there's Stil-tons of this cheese in our fridge.

January's seasonal cheese selection

Each month we curate 5 of the finest cheeses the UK has to offer. They highlight quality craftsmanship, complex flavour profiles and form the backbone of our gifts and subscriptions.

1 of ProductListDrop
The Cheese Geek St Helena
St Helena

4 total reviews

Blake Bowden (cheesemaker extraordinaire) at St Jude has developed the divine St Helena, using raw Montbeliarde milk from the herd at Fen Farm. St Helena has an inviting, supple texture so reminiscent of a classic St Nectaire/Tomme. It is unmistakably rich, with milky and nutty sweet vibes that just keep you coming back for more. But, the washed rind, and the raw milk bring another dimension beyond that. It has those farmy, tangy notes that catch your attention, earning respect as well as delectation. Take a Bow-den, Blake (yikes).

The Cheese Geek Devonshire Red
Devonshire Red

3 total reviews

This mild Devonshire Delight is bursting with flavours. There's hints of lemony, zesty freshness as well as nutty and savoury notes. This clothbound process gives Devonshire Red a rich crumbly texture, resulting in a divine hard cheese.
The Cheese Geek Etivaz
Jura Mountain Cheese

A classic hard cheese with aromatic spiciness and a strong flavour - a true mountain cheese which is also well suited to a creamy fondue.

cheesegeek Maida Vale
Maida Vale

9 total reviews

Village Maid are cheesemakers that just know what they are doing... they make the wonderful Wigmore, Waterloo and Spenwood. Winner of best cows milk cheese at the recent Artisan Cheese Awards, Maida Vale is made in a similar style to Waterloo, except it is washed during maturation in IPA. So whilst the cheese is inherently buttery, creamy and rich on account of using Guernsey cows (notoriously creamy milk), the IPA brings into the mix a nice little tangy punchy kick that just keeps you thinking. As with all cheeses like this, the majority of that kick will come from the rind, so you can compare the taste of the centre cheese vs the rind...quite a difference!

cheesegeek Cashel Blue
Cashel Blue

5 total reviews

BLUE

This is the perfect blue cheese for those who want complexity but not the sharp saltiness, minerality or general strength of a Stilton or bolder blue cheese. Cashel Blue is more soft-honey than nutty, and has little salty sharpness with almost no minerality to speak of compared to a Barkham Blue for example. The finish is super clean with just a hint of saltiness at the end. What it all adds up to, is a scenario where some of the more subtle flavours aren't scared to come out and say hi... honey, some hazelnut and straight up creamy goodness.