The new artisan courtyard at Sacrewell Farm near Peterborough is growing with another new business taking up residence adding to the appeal of the centre which regularly attracts dozens of families with its great outdoor play facilities, animals and rare breeds.
Cheese maker Alison Williamson from Stamford started Whyte Wytch earlier this year after retiring from her role in IT and has taken one of the units at the farm joining the recently opened Nene Valley Spirits gin and Stamford Heavenly Chocolates.
Alison started her career in dairy – making yogurt and cheese – before studying agriculture at university and becoming a dairy husbandry advisor for DEFRA. In her retirement, she’s chosen to go back to her roots, creating an artisan cheese that is already tantalising tastebuds across the area.
The cheese takes six-weeks to mature and there are 100 rounds per batch so hopefully we can get to try some from the first batch aroundmid-February and she’ll be making a new batch every week. The project’s been part funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development.
She said: “The cheese making process is quite complex and I’m really looking forward to sharing it with visitors to Sacrewell.
“We think it will be the only artisan cheese currently made in Cambridgeshire, which is really exciting. The milk for the cheese is sourced from a farm in Bassingthorpe, so it’s a culmination of local and rural diversification.”
Alison (pictured above) will join Nene Valley Spirits, Stamford Heavenly Chocolates, Dave the Blacksmith, Nene Coppicing & Crafts and woodcarver Glyn Mould who already have premises within the Artisan Courtyard. You can pop down to the courtyard for a browse without paying entry to the farm and gin and chocolate can be bought directly from the retailers on site.
Lee Scowen, General Manager at Sacrewell said: “We’re really excited to have Whyte Wytch opening at Sacrewell in the new year. With so many wonderful new start-ups and businesses already on site, the courtyard is fast becoming the rural food and craft hub that we envisioned it to be.”
Once it’s matured, the cheese will be available from Sacrewell’s shop or online via Alison’s website.
A cross between a camembert and a brie, the white cheese can be eaten cold or heated in the oven and has a creamy, nutty texture without an overpowering flavour.
Alison added: “Once we have settled into the site, we are going to look at doing cheesemaking and tasting workshops which will compliment the workshops already available on site at Nene Valley Spirits, Stamford Heavenly Chocolates and Sacrewell’s own blacksmithing courses.”
For more information about Whyte Wytch visit www.whytewytch.com.
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