Cracking Cheese, Cracking Visit!

Jon joins Wallace for some good old Yorkshire cheese

After forty odd years tramping about the UK, it would be fair to say I have my favourite places to not only stay, but to visit. This, the first of an occasional series, will bring to you some of these, with a no holds barred honest look.

This isn’t an advertorial, as these venues’s have no editorial control over that I say, nor has Coach World. As always from me, I report it as I see it – so read on and enjoy!

Most of you may have already guessed where my first port of call is by the title, and you are right – it’s the multi award winning Wensleydale Creamery in the North Yorkshire village of Hawes, the home of Wensleydale Cheese.

Britain is blessed, yet again, by producing some of the finest cheeses in the world. Some may go on about European cheeses, which are quite good on occasions, but British cheese, cheese made in Britain from milk taken from cows munching our grass and breathing our country air, is as good as any, and better than most.

When it comes to fresh air, Wensleydale is as good as it gets. The natural moorland and Dale benefits from the best and cleanest of weathers, producing a grassland and limestone sweet meadow that makes the herd almost smile with pleasure! Don’t believe me? Just watch them! Slow moooving (sorry) four footed cream machines grazing in fabulous scenery, and all for our benefit.

Cistercian Monks were the first to make the cheese back in the twelfth century, but it was Kit Calvert who, in 1935 got the backing of locals to save the last remaining creamery. This Dalesman eventually sold his business to the Milk Marketing Board in 1966.

In 1979 the creamery title passed to Dairy Crest and in May 1992 the creamery closed with the loss of 59 jobs.

Perhaps you can imagine the worry this caused the village and locals in Wensleydale, as the loss of any job in a small community is bad, but to lose 59 is a disaster. The fight was on to save the creamery, save jobs, and to return to traditional ways (no pun intended) of manufacture. Help was at hand though, and several offers were considered before four former managers with the backing of a local businessman secured the creamery six months later. Although only able to take on eleven former employees, it was done in time for the busy Christmas markets. From this slow start the Wensleydale creamery now employs over 200 people, and the award winning cheeses are sold all over the world. All are made from traditional methods, and can be purchased either in selected supermarkets and specialist shops, the creamery itself, or even online from their own website.

This isn’t any ‘plastic’ cheese, or downmarket stuff, this is the real thing, and not content with winning awards for their own Wensleydale, are now able to offer the same cheese blended with different ingredients to bring a new taste sensation to your cheese board at home. Wensleydale with Cranberries is not just for Christmas, or Wensleydale with Pineapple, Apricot, Garlic and Chive, and Ginger are all available.

These handcrafted cheeses are very, very special, and a visit to the creamery will show you why.

The village of Hawes in the Yorkshire National Park is pretty, and was a regular stop for touring motor coaches over thirty years ago. Nowadays modern coaches are still regular visitors to the area, especially as Hawes is situated on a road with the Ribbleshead viaduct at one end, with the beautiful Settle to Carlisle Railway, and Bedale (via Aysgarth Falls if you wish) at the other. This is great excursion country, and is within reach of any tour based in the area skirted by Carlisle, Whitby, York, Skipton and Lancaster. The village itself has some lovely little specialist shops, and is well worth exploring.

The scenery en route – any of them – is stunning, and it is the Wensleydale Creamery’s Visitor Centre that can make a great day out into a perfect day out.

It is better to prebook a group visit, and for a small fee your group is shown just how this great cheese is made, before letting your own herd loose into the shop and ‘refreshment’ areas. I say ‘refreshment’, as they have both a Coffee Shop and Restaurant, (the Coffee Shop seats 72, and the Restaurant even more) and every year over 200,000 visitors partake of either my favourite – toasted teacake and tea (a PROPER teacake with PROPER butter and PROPER jam together with REAL tea), or go into the restaurant and enjoy one of the meals freshly prepared by the resident chef. No boil in the bag here! Both traditional and very special food is on offer, and group bookings can be taken to make your day even more special.

A point not often mentioned – except by me, are the toilets. These, men, women and less abled, are spotless. And should on the odd occasion anything me amiss it will be rectified not only at once but with a smile!! The people who work here care. Really. This isn’t just a job for them, this is part of their heritage and culture, and you are treated as a guest should be – politely and with courtesy.

To the shop! (the highlight of any visit I make)

This isn’t any old shop, you know the type, full of cra... sorry, local souvenirs. As much care goes into the goods on sale as goes into the cheese – and it is with the cheese where we start.

It’s all well and good me going on about different cheeses, but you need to taste them before a purchase. No problem here, as every cheese has a sample plate in front of it, and you are urged to sample before you buy. I suggest this is done before you troop into the cafe, otherwise you may not have room for that teacake! In the chilled section I found some local dry cured bacon I couldn’t resist, and when it was cooked it brought back memories of when bacon tasted like bacon, and not the saltwater injected muck you sometimes are offered today. I left together with a slab of low sugar fruit cake and a tin of bikkies, several truckles of cheese, ( including the new Jervaulx Blue ), and the cost was no more than I would expect to pay in a quality delicatessen, or upmarket super market. (In fact, a little less).

Yes, there’s fluffy sheep and other oddities to pick from too, but I noticed they were all of good quality, and not the shoddy type often sadly offered to consumers.

Being on a coach you may think you have a problem getting the cheese home, but the Creamery has cool bags for sale, or maybe buy yourself a sample to nibble, (it will not last very long!) and then order online when you get home.

The area itself can offer so much more too, but at the risk of repeating myself, it is the Wensleydale Creamery that makes it a very special excursion, and will add sellability to your tour programme. I fully recommend this, and am sure that you will not be disappointed with any aspect of your groups visit.

More detail, including opening times etc, can be found at www.wensleydale.co.uk . Again, I should mention that Wensleydale Creamery have had no input into this article, and no money or goods were offered or accepted to gain my favourable opinions. Mores the pity!