Cheese
Master Cheesemakers
Our team of skilled cheesemakers rely on time honoured methods to supervise the entire process from pasteuristion of the milk through to grading the cheese.
We treat each vat individually to ensure that we maintain the unrivalled quality and flavour that makes Brue Valley Cheddar.
The Process
We make cheese to a number of unique recipes. We gently warm the milk and add special cultures and rennet to our milk to start the cheese making process. This causes the curds and whey to form and then when we judge the timing is right the curds are separated from the whey.
Cheddaring
We then begin the cheddaring process which gives our cheese its unique texture. The curds are repeatedly mixed, cut and piled to help reduce excess moisture before drying.
Milling
The curds are then finely chopped (or ‘milled’) and salted before being put into moulds to form the cheese. Once these have dried the blocks of cheese are then wrapped by hand in saran film and brown paper and left to mature in wooden slats – traditional slatted wooden boxes made just for the job.
Maturing
Maturation time varies and can be as long as 18 months. A number of factors, including moisture and time of year, can change the development and taste of a cheese and so we grade our cheese by taking small samples to make sure that we get it to you when it is absolutely perfect!
It takes time, dedication and skill to produce the full bodied flavour that you have come to recognise as Brue Valley.
Meet the team
Billy Melluish - Head Cheesemaker
Billy is our head cheesemaker, having recently taken over the job from his father, Bill. He is responsible for overseeing the job of turning our creamy milk into cheese, and tests each batch for salt and moisture content. Billy loves working as part of the team at Brue and has been here for 23 years. When he isn’t making cheese he enjoys skittles and walking, and his favourite Brue product is…you guessed it, cheese!