OUR CHEESE
The Book and Bucket Cheese Company hand make artisan cheese in the heart of Dorset from sheep and cow's milk. All our milk is sourced locally, collected within 24hrs of being milked and is made into cheese that day.
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We have a selection of cheeses that we hand make and they are listed below.
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You can find our cheese at many local Stockists and to order some for home delivery, you can order via our Online Shop.
Burns
A traditional 'squeaky' halloumi cheese which has an amazing depth of flavour and creates perfect caramelisation when cooked.
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This cheese is made by warming the milk and adding (vegetarian) rennet, which helps separate the milk into curds and whey. Once this has happened, the curds are moulded and the whey is heated further. The moulded curds are then returned to the hot whey to cook. Once ready, the cheese then floats to the top and can be removed and cooled before being salted in brine. It is the cooking process that gives halloumi the distinctive squeaky texture.
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Hardy's
Our Signature Dorset Hard Cheese liked by many to a mature manchego, it works well on a cheese board or adds a mature cheesy depth to any dish as it melts and bubbles to a golden brown.
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This cheese is sealed with a local rapeseed oil when it is first made and then left to develop a natural mould rind. We also press the cheese for around 18 hours. The cheese is then aged to around 9 months, giving a nutty sweetness. Hardy's is turned daily for the first month and then turned weekly for the remainder of its maturing where we keep the humidity at 85% and temperature of 11c.
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Austen
Our take on a traditional feta.
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This creamy feta is packed full of flavour and has the perfect balance of acidity to cut through the salt, making it perfect to pair with a traditional Greek salad.
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Shakespeare
To Brie or not to Brie? Our white Bloom Rind cheese.
The key to our brie is all about the storing and aftercare. The cheese is individually salted which is measured out depending on the actual weight of each cheese and it is this rubbing of salt onto the surface that breaks down the cheese under the rind.
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The maturing conditions must be maintained at 90% humidity to prevent moisture loss and temperature is kept constant to control the rate of maturing. Each cheese is hand turned daily with the first mould growth showing after 4 days. The cheese is finally ready to eat after 6 weeks.
We can also wrap this cheese and move it to a high humidity fridge
to finish off, if a soft runny cheese with a complete breakdown of structure is required.
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Hemingway
Our Dorset crumbly, salad cheese matured in Kalamata Olive Brine for a minimum of 4 weeks. The brine not only gives the cheese a striking red colour but an intense olive flavour that will surprise your taste buds.
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Hemingway is made in the feta style but this cheese is ripened to lower the acidity. This gives the cheese an acidic balance to cut through the high salt level of being stored in the Kalamata Olive Brine.
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Golding
This ricotta salata cheese is made exclusively for The Pig - Restaurants with Rooms. This cheese has also been featured on Channel 4's Sunday Brunch.
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Feedback from Great Taste 2021 Judges:
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"This is a crumbly and moreish cheese. There is discernible sheep's milk character with a touch of sweetness, but also a peppery finish, particularly close to the rind. There is a bit of bluing in the body of the cheese, which adds a touch of heat, though the flavour, while intense, never becomes acrid. The salting is well judged. "
"This rich and tangy cheese has a multitude of uses...complex lingering flavours, a clean mouthfeel, lovely salt levels. Fabulous."
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Orwell
Our velvety soft cheese that packs a big flavour.
We make our soft cheese slightly different to most and we add a large amount of culture to produce its unique texture. This culture is added around 40 mins before (vegetarian) rennet is added and the resulting set milk is then ladled into moulds. Once it is left overnight it can then be lightly salted before being transferred into the fridge.
Most soft cheese are normally ready at this point in the process but because of the high level of culture, the cheese will continue to soften as it ages, allowing the flavour to further develop. We love to pair the cheese on warm crusty bread with a drizzle of honey of fresh herbs.
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Smokey Burns
Our Dorset Oak Smoked Halloumi.
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The Burns Halloumi cheese is cold smoked for 15 hours over oak chips that are dampened down with scrumpy cider. The aroma when this cheese is cooking is to die for!
Smokey Burns works well in vegetarian dishes as a replacement for smoked bacon.
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Truffled Golding
This cheese is made exclusively for The Pig - Restaurants with Rooms.
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This cheese is made in the same way as our Golding, but with fresh truffle added for some extra wow.
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Cranborne Blue
Cranborne Blue was developed during lockdown in partnership with a local farm that was struggling to sell all its milk.
The gentle creamy Blue cheese has a deep yellow glow that has electric blue streaks.
Cranborne Blue has an oaty sweetness in the taste with salty spikiness coming from the veining. The rind gives an earthy counter note without overpowering the subtly of the more delicate flavour.
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Huxley
Developed in this "BRAVE NEW WORLD".
Made using local cows milk, this golden halloumi style cheese is perfect for frying or for BBQ's.
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Made with 100% cows milk, pasteurised and suitable for vegetarians.
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Smoked Blyton
A rich creamy cow's milk brie, with wonderful mushroomy notes, using 100% Dorset cows milk.
Once the Brie has been made, it is then smoked over applewood chips, to give a light and sweet smokey finish. Something very special for your cheese board, or baked in the oven (our favourite is to wrap in foil and place on the BBQ for a short time until it oozes, then dip in some crusty bread)
Potter
A rich and creamy curd style soft cheese made with cow's milk, that is perfect for both sweet and savoury dishes.
This cheese has been made in collaboration with The Pig Hotel and Restaurant group and is sold both on their menus as well as in our online shop & through our stockists.
The name Potter was chosen in a joint competition and named after Beatrix Potter - whose passion for conservation, sustainabilty, local breeds and traditional methods runs through the heart of both The Book and Bucket Cheese Co and The Pig Hotels.
The Cheesecake recipe can be found in our website blog here.
Huxley Fire
Developed in this "BRAVE NEW WORLD".
Made using local cows milk, this golden halloumi style cheese has the added kick of Dorset Naga Chilli and is perfect for frying or for BBQ's.
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Made with 100% cows milk, pasteurised and is suitable for vegetarians.
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Blyton
A rich and creamy cows milk brie, with wonderful mushroomy notes, made using 100% Dorset Cows milk.
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Pasteurised and suitable for vegetarians with a minimum shelf life of 21 Days.
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Wilde
A seasonal soft cheese, which is made with cow's milk and wild garlic which we forage on the Cranborne estate.
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This seasonal cheese is something special, with the vibrant green flecks of wild garlic adding both a wonderful aroma and colour to any cheeseboard. It also works so well in many dishes, from a pizza topping to a spring alternative in cheese scones.
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