Chiswick Cheese Market – Sunday October 19

Redlap crowned Best New Cheese 2025

September 24 saw the on -line final of The People’s Choice Best New Cheese 2025. What a great evening it was with four final cheeses lined up that had been chosen at the June Chiswick Cheese Market by you.

Hundreds of people registered to become judges for the evening and tuned in from home with their tasting boxes at the ready.

The makers were interviewed, expert panellists led us through the tasting and the home judges passed their verdict; and the winner was… (drumroll please) ‘Redlap’ made by Martin and Helen @stonetreedairy, North Devon.

Right image: Clockwise from the top ‘Redlap’, ‘ooh lala’, ‘Yr Afr’ and Nanny Gwynne cheeses

Made from milk exclusively from their own 200 strong goat herd which they farm sustainably on the sloping fields overlooking the sea.

It is the attention to every detail from adding herbs to the grass planting, the care with which they look after their animals, the state-of-the-art milking and meticulous cheesemaking that has made it possible for Martin and Helen to have created such a masterful cheese in such a short space of time.

Images:   Martin of Stone Tree dairy with their Redlap cheese and Redlap goats

New faces and returning favourites at Cheesewick

Mark my words to make an alpine style goats’ cheese is hard enough but to make one with such balance of flavour is truly a feat. Congratulations to @stonetreedairy and we can’t wait to see you at Cheesewick!

We will have ‘Redlap’ and runner-up  ‘Yr Afr’ from @wackywedge, Wales on HQ for free tasting. They are both goats’ cheeses but could not be more different – ‘Redlap’ a pressed hard aged cheese reminiscent of an Alpine style and ‘Yr Afr ‘a soft magically sweet wriggly-rinded small round – both absolutely delicious.

Images: Redcap and Yr Afr cheeses

The makers will be at the market selling their superb and well-deserved winning cheeses so join us on HQ and let us know if you agree with the judges votes.

A big welcome back to Alfie. If you remember he brought the marvellous Hollismead dairy cheeses to us before they stopped production last year.

He has joined the fantastic and well-established importer @europeanfinecheese and is spearheading some market appearances for them. We are lucky to be their very first market and Alfie will be bringing some delights from small producers in Switzerland and Holland – I just can’t wait for all that superb cheese for melting and oozing in the autumn weather.

Image: A1652, An unusual cheese made in the Jura region of Switzerland

DEFRA ban continues to frustrate importers

News update on Defra Ban. Sadly, DEFRA are continuing with their ban of French and Italian unpasteurised cheese imports into the UK. Lumpy Skin Disease is a disease that only cows suffer and is carried by insects. It is completely harmless to humans and our cattle in the UK cannot catch it from imported cheese products and we are safe eating it.

We can enjoy unpasteurised cheeses in France and Italy where they are made but our own food agency has decided upon a knee-jerk reaction to the outbreak by banning all imports of unpasteurised and ‘thermised’ milk cheeses from these areas. We are the only country to do so.

What does this mean? – no Reblochon, no unpasteurised Epoisses, no Tomme de Savoie and perhaps at this time of year worst of all no Mont d’Or from France …just at the time of year this season’s new Mont d’Or is ready to enjoy for the first time this season. So, c’mon DEFRA  – ‘lift the ban!’.

Image: Some of the banned cheeses

In the meantime, Roberto and Joel @thefrenchcomte and Medhi @gastronomicamarket have been busy sourcing alternatives to their normal stockists, so fear not there will be stalls full of fabulous French and Italian cheese for us to enjoy. Missing your French and Italian favourites? – ask us on HQ for some British cheeses at the market to try instead – you never know you might find a new best cheese!

Keep warm this market with Raclette from @theroebuckchiswick, cheddiflette (a British version of tartiflette) by Fay @bigwheelcheese, fabulous crepes from @lamusebouchelm and the ever-popular brilliant toasties from Jacky @grateandgrill

Find a complete list of traders at www.chiswickcheesemarket.uk. Over 200 cheeses every month and wonderful chutneys, funghi, tomatoes and everything to go you’re your cheeseboard you can imagine.

Autumn is here, the summer has long been fermented into cheese, the flavours are exceptional, the cheeses are ripe and ready to buy. All I can say – is see you there!

Lucy

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