Ironically, Stilton can only be made in Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire or Derbyshire, despite the fact that the town of Stilton, where it is NOT produced, is just off the A1 motorway near Peterborough. It is the produce of the former location that interests me so much. For a start, Cropwell Bishop is only a thirty minute drive from my home. Secondly, Stilton cheese is a real king among fermented curds. Contrary to popular opinion, it is not copper needles that are used to pierce the naturally drained and wrapped raw cheeses that are produced from cows‘ milk, but stainless steel, which is only applied some five weeks after initial lay-up, by which time the customary self-forming crust is starting to develop.

At around nine weeks, the cheese is ready to be sold. Its unique smell and grainy, yet smooth character will determine whether it receives the Stilton nomenclature, otherwise it will be sold off as simply ‘blue cheese’. To obtain the finest palate, depending on your personal taste, it may be advisable to lay-up the cheese for another few weeks, as maturity does make its texture even smoother and flavour more rounded.

The Cropwell Bishop samples sent to me were of both the current blue-label Stilton and the green-label organic Stilton. The former cheese is simply stunning, with the slimmest of crusts containing the most beguiling of cream cheeses. The blue veining is evenly distributed throughout the cheese and its overall flavour is slightly salty, with a mildly metallic after-taste that is clearly related to the blue-veins.

Although smooth, it does possess a slight graininess to the texture and would be superb served with a warmed, chunky and nutty brown bread and I would probably forego the butter, instead allowing the cheese to fulfil its creamy destiny. As far as the organic variation is concerned, I found this fascinating, as it is the first time that I have tasted organic Stilton. While lacking the initial bite of the pasteurised alternative, I found it, if anything, to be even smoother than the blue Stilton. Its aroma is slightly sweeter and less acidic than that of the blue Stilton. It certainly does not possess the same amount of graininess and it is slightly saltier in flavour, but no less delicious and satisfying on the palate. No cheeseboard should be devoid of a decent fresh Stilton and, whether buying one and Christmas-proofing it with a superior grade of port, crumbling it over a mixed leaf salad, or just obtaining a chunk for a post-prandial settler, I can think of fewer better cheeses than Cropwell Bishop’s exquisite Stilton or Organic Stilton.