Awards and truffles
I went last week up to Stafford for a cheese visit, right in the middle of the country. It was so great to see the good folks from the International Cheese and Dairy Awards at the press launch – it was a rather joyous reunion at a lovely place, Sandon Hall.
Bingley Hall, where the event is now being held in October (21-23), is being used as a vaccination centre currently at the Staffordshire County Showground. After a jolly evening of eating marvellous cheese and discussing the upcoming show, I went to depart, and they shoved more cheese into my already laden bag.
So, I have been handing out Belton Farms Red Fox Aged Leicester and Bonne Maman onion chutney to friends, and getting texts back saying, “That cheese is exactly my type of cheese.” Followed by several heart emojis. I doubt that has ever been said about a vegan cheese substitute.
We kept the Snowdonia Cheese Company’s Truffle Trove. We opened the extra mature cheddar with black summer truffle last night and scarfed the entire thing. Well, ate half on its own, and put the other half over the potatoes we had dug up at the allotment, after they had been roasted.
I thought, where has this been all my life? My son and husband both said the potatoes were “amazing.” They also devoured a large portion of the Snowdonia Beechwood smoked mature cheddar. We actually already had that in the fridge, because we always have cheese here.
Part of the delight of going to a show is discovering new cheeses and revisiting old favourites. With the chefs and additional awards, as well as the tie-ins with cheese accompaniments such as drinks, chutneys, crackers and charcuterie, I think the ICDA will be fairly epic this year at its new home. More than ever, I am very much looking forward to it, as no doubt many others are. It’ll be like Christmas for foodies, with James Martin as Father Christmas.
#ICDA2021 #lovecheeselive #cheese #foodie
Internationalcheeseawards.co.uk
- Suzanne Christiansen, editor, Dairy Industries International.
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Twitter: @dairyindustries or LinkedIn: Dairy Industries International magazine.
