Sparkenhoe Mature Red Leicester

$45.00 / Lbprice is $45.00 by Lb

Raw
Animal Rennet
Age: 12 Months
Cow Milk
by The Clarke Family
United Kingdom

Approachable
Adventurous
Soft
Hard

Crumbly and nutty, with a deep orange hue, Mature Red Leicester might be confused for English cheddar. But this special cheese has a history all its own. Traditional Red Leicester was extinct for decades when Sparkenhoe revived it in 2005. These raw-milk, clothbound wheels are extra-aged by Neal’s Yard until dense and crystalline; bright yet extremely savory, like concentrated beef broth. Bring out the umami with the sweetness of Le Bon Magot Carrot & Fruit Conserve and Murray’s Honey Roasted Almonds.

"This cheese is super meaty! Sink-your-teeth-in, robust, roasted flavor. I usually pair it with sliced apple and ale or pickles and a hunk of sourdough bread.”

Murray’s Merchandising – New York, NY

Raw Cow'S Milk, Salt, Animal Rennet, Annatto, Cheese Cultures, Clothbound With Lard

Named for the town of Leicester in the county of Leicestershire, Red Leicester is a centuries-old British cheese.
It was originally made using surplus milk from Stilton production, but as demand for Stilton grew, there was less leftover milk, so its production decreased.
It’s thought that cheesemakers began adding dyes to the cheese as early as the 17th century, to create a color that distinguished Red Leicester from similar cheeses made nearby, like Cheshire and Cheddar.
The color is now achieved with annatto, an orange-tinted food coloring derived from the seeds of the achiote tree.
In the 19th century, Red Leicester became more mass-produced, with the raw-milk, clothbound version of the cheese extinct for half a century when David and Jo Clarke of Sparkenhoe Farm revived it.
They had no cheesemaking experience but did have a quality herd of Holsteins and a desire to revive a forgotten cheese.
Drawing on historic recipes and advice from local cheesemakers, they set about making classic, handcrafted Red Leicester using the cheddaring process and clothbinding the wheels with lard.
Younger wheels—moist and mellow—are sold between five and six months. For this Mature Red Leicester, Neal’s Yard selects wheels and brings them to their own aging facilities to age for six more months.
The older wheels are denser, drier, and more intensely savory.

Family Owned

Farmstead

When you receive your cheese, unpack the order and refrigerate the items. We recommend using the cheese paper we send most of our products in to store the cheese. The cheese paper helps cover the items and stop them from drying out, while also allowing the cheese to breathe. Since cheese is mold, it's a living thing! If you cut off air circulation to the cheese, you can actually cause it to suffocate and spoil at a faster rate.