A county firm has proved they really are the biggest of cheeses after sweeping the board at a national awards.
Butlers Farmhouse Cheeses, from Inglewhite, near Preston, scooped 10 medals in the British Cheese Awards, which kicked off British Cheese Week.
The success at the contest, held at the British Cheese Festival at Cardiff Castle, takes the company’s total trophy haul this summer to a staggering 56 awards.
And the family firm, which has been making cheeses at Wilson Fields Farms, Button Street, since 1932, also chose the event to unveil the winner of its own ‘Craft a Cheese’ competition.
The winner cheese, named Far Pavilion, was the brainchild of Janet Nicholson.
She suggested blending curds made from cow’s milk with coriander seeds, chili and cumin to create an exciting blend of traditional Lancashire with an eastern twist.
Janet, from Nottingham, said: “I saw the competition on a pack of Butlers’ Blacksticks Blue and thought it would be fun to enter the cheese I make. I never thought I would win.
“Far Pavilion is inspired by Indian paneer, which as a fan of curry I was quite familiar with and used when making vegetarian curries for my friends.
“Once it’s ready I simply dice it, put it on skewers and barbecue. It’s a wonderfully simple recipe.”
Butlers created a celebrity hall of fame including former England cricket star Andrew Flintoff, from Ribbleton, Preston, and Olympic cycling champion Bradley Wiggins, from Chorley, to inspire food fans to use its new online generator.
Tim Fisher and Wayne Sudell from Butlers were given the challenge of re-creating Janet’s recipe in time for the festival.
Cheesemaker Tim said: “We didn’t have the time to make a hard cheese for the festival – that would have taken at least a couple of months to age.
“So instead we used a fresh Lancashire Curd, which is favoured by local chefs but little known outside Lancashire.
“The result is softer than Janet’s version but makes a lovely summery snack and it seemed to be very popular at the festival.”
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