Struggling to think of a gift for your dad next month? (Father’s Day is Sunday 21st June)
We all know that dads love cheese (and beer!), so Andy Swinscoe from The Courtyard Dairy, has come up with some top gift ideas for this Father’s Day, gifts your dad might appreciate more than socks!
Strong cheese. “We frequently get asked for the strongest cheese we’ve got (‘one that bites back’),” says Andy, “so we’ve developed a strong cheese selection specifically for Father’s Day, to highlight those cheeses that really do have sting in their tail!”
The selection features unique cheeses made by small producers: outstanding Old Winchester, a 20-month-old powerful, crystalline Cheddar/Gouda cross; strong and spicy Bleu des Causses; Tunworth, Britain’s rival to the best French Camembert; and St Oswald, an intense, creamy washed-rind from the Cotswolds.
“Or if your Dad loves a strong Cheddar,” says, Andy, “true Cheddar-lovers will seek out the likes of Dale End Cheddar, Keen’s and Lincolnshire Poacher. These farmhouse Cheddars have a really good bite, are sold at a minimum of 12 months old, and once tasted, they’re never forgotten”.
Beer and cheese. Cheese and wine may be the classic partnership, but with fantastic micro-breweries springing up throughout Britain alongside an explosion in farmhouse cheese making, beer and cheese is firmly back on the agenda. “There is a good reason why a Ploughman’s lunch – a chunk of bread, crisp apple, sticky chutney, wedge of Cheddar and pint of bitter – works so well,” says Andy, “the flavours just marry perfectly.” So if your dad’s a beer-lover you could get him a matched cheese and beer selection, courtesy of Andy’s research: “After lots of tastings for our beer and cheese selection, we found the best matches were the light, hoppy flavours of an IPA with crumbly fresh cheeses like Lancashire and Wensleydale, stronger bitter with Cheddar and darker porters and stouts with the blues – you’ll be surprised how good these pairings work. Or for some unusual twists, try wheat beer and washed rinds (like Epoisses) or fruit flavoured beers to complement Wensleydale.”
”Conveniently, you don’t have to worry about delivering these gifts in person: “There are lots of good cheese mail order companies like The Courtyard Dairy which will deliver direct to your dad, all nicely bagged up and chilled. It couldn’t be easier…”
Buy Father’s Day Cheese Gifts online here.
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