History

The Webber family go back seven generations in the Cheddar Valley, an area of Somerset stretching from Cheddar in the north to Glastonbury Abbey in the south.

Their great grandfather and their grandfather farmed most of their lives in the hamlet of Cocklake and then later in the village of Blackford, almost directly in the middle of the most famous cheesemaking valley in the world.

“I can well remember my grandfather and his cousin milking their brown Dairy Shorthorns in the yard. This early milking was completed by hand and the milk used in the kitchen. You certainly can’t beat warm, creamy, unpasteurised milk on cereals or in strong coffee.”

The kitchen only used a small portion of the twice daily milkings and the remaining milk which could not be sold was turned into butter, clotted cream and rich, golden Cheddar Cheese. The Cheddar was linen wrapped and stored in a larder until it had firmed up and then placed in a musty-smelling cheese store which was partially buried underground to keep even the hottest summer temperatures under control (this, of course, was in the days before commercial refrigeration).

Their great grandfather sold some of his cheddar to William Small, the cheesemonger in Cheddar Gorge (which still exists today as the Cheddar Gorge Cheese Depot”), but the majority of it travelled to London by train. It was sold at about six months old.

The only concession they make to mechanisation today is the milk stirring and mould pressing. Machines are essential as the volumes of milk we handle daily are around a tenfold increase on their great grandfather’s operation. The rest of the process of culturing, rennetting, cutting and separation of the curd and mould filling are still carried out by hand in the time honoured way of previous generations.

Times Past Cheese Dairy has been making unpasteurised Cheddar and Red Leicester cheese in the small village of Draycott, on the outskirts of Cheddar Village since 1987. March 22, 1998 saw the eleventh anniversary of their first cheese production when they turned a tiny two hundred gallons of milk into small Cheddar Truckles.

It became obvious soon afterwards that those who tried the cheese wanted the deep, full and very rich flavours that they were producing from their high quality unpasteurised milk.They soon progressed to making the large Farmhouse Cheddars, which are sold today whole, quartered or as small wedges. Red Leicester traditional wheels followed in 1991.

Cheese making and the whole aura of the Cheddar Valley is an irresistible art form. No matter how good they think they are at making cheese, things may still go wrong and they will have to adapt to the changing seasons and weather conditions to keep on producing a quality product for their customers.

The tradition that was started here in the Cheddar Valley is safe in their hands for at least another two generations, and they hope you will continue to support them with your patronage.