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We strive to be synonymous with quality. And that starts with a highly selective supplier policy. One company that we are delighted to be associated with is Neal’s Yard Creamery, headed by one of the finest cheesemakers in the UK, Charlie Westhead.
Attention to detail is paramount to the success of Neal’s Yard Creamery. Starting with their milk supply.
“We collect the cow’s and goat’s milk personally from the farm each morning,
to keep up to date with any news at the farm and with the animals. The Cow’s milk comes from a herd of just 40 cows owned by Stephen and Sarah Fletcher at the foot on the Black Mountains, while the goat’s milk comes from another local farm in Herefordshire.” For Charlie, the devil really is in the detail, “We have learnt that ‘less is more’ with raw milk: The less you damage the milk by pumping it, the more you let it’s character come through in the finished cheese and avoid any harsh flavours.”
This knowledge and insight is the reward of over 30 years within the cheese industry.
Charlie’s career began in the 1980s as a cheesemonger for Neal’s Yard Dairy of Covent Garden. Eager to combine his understanding of the market with a love of production, he soon established the sister company Neal’s Yard Creamery in 1990.
In 1996, Charlie and his wife Grainne bought a beautiful 18th Century stone cottage with outbuildings near Hay-on- Wye on the border of Wales. This remains the stunning location for the Creamery today. The romance and beauty of the building typifies Charlie’s love of traditional methods employed to craft the yoghurts, crème fraiche and cheeses. “ There is no machinery at the Creamery – Everything is done by hand.”
As well as the impressive history associated with the farmhouse, the Creamery is also embracing the future. The building has several eco-friendly structures, relying on an efficient log-fired boiler, solar panels and wind turbine to generate the necessary energy to run the business. This environmental commitment
even extends to waste, using a wetland system of reeds, willows and yellow flag irises to filter their waste water.
The term ‘perfectionist’ is today a cliché. Which is a shame, as Charlie’s standards of excellence are, shall we say, uncompromisingly high. With rigorous testing and daily sampling, this hunger for improvement is the reason cheeses like the Ragstone and Dorstone have built a fantastic reputation over recent years and are a focal point of a number of high-profile menus across the UK.
With a growing reputation for outstanding quality and flavour, it wasn’t long before several well-known supermarkets fancied a nibble. But that is not how Charlie
does business. He is unrelenting in his commitment to championing local suppliers as well as employing renewable energy sources to combat climate change. He wears his status as an independent trader as a proud badge of honour.
And rightly so.
Imagery © Neal’s Yard Creamery, Marsha Arnold Photography.
“ We won’t ever supply the supermarkets. They wouldn’t know how to care for our cheese anyway, or understand the variation in how it looks and behaves throughout the year. ”
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