Old Winchester

In the New Forest at Lyburn Farm, Mike and Judie Smales have created a modern British classic cheese – Old Winchester.

As milk prices fell, Mike and Judie decided they needed an outlet for the milk from their 180 British Friesian cows.  Deciding to make cheese, they went on a one-day Cheddar-making course with Val Bines.  Armed with this basic knowledge the Smales decided to make a Gouda-style (the curd is washed so the cheese ends up slightly more sweet): “When we started to make cheese twelve years ago,” says Mike, “we deliberately chose not to make Cheddar, for all the obvious reasons, not least there are already quite a lot of them.  So we started with a Gouda-style recipe.”

Yet the cheese turned out a bit different from expected.  But not every mistake is bad!  Instead, the amazing Old Winchester was born: a cross between Gouda, Parmesan and Cheddar.  At the Courtyard Dairy it is aged for 20-months to give it a sweet, tangy, crystallised depth.  It is also known as Old Smales.

As well as a great ‘table cheese’ Old Winchester works incredibly well as a vegetarian Parmesan replacement, as it is made without animal rennet, you will often find chefs using it for vegetarian dishes.

Read about the history of Lyburn Farm and Old Winchester from The Courtyard Dairy’s recent visit by clicking here.