Cheddar, first made in about the 16th century, is one of the oldest of English cheeses; it is thought the Romans first introduced the British people to the production of hard cheeses. A smooth, hard cheese with a sharp, pleasing flavour, cheddar is made from whole pasteurised cows’ milk. It is typically aged from 9 months to two years, and its flavour becomes sharper the longer it ages. Cheddars and related cheeses, such as Colby, are produced through a process called “cheddaring,” in which thick slabs of curd are stacked on top of each other, pressed together, and then stacked again to produce a very finely textured, dry, semi-firm cheese.

Cheddar is now produced all over the world using the English recipe, but purists insist that a cheese is not a true cheddar unless it was made in Somerset, Devon, or Dorset.