Wiltshire & its cheese legacy
Wiltshire & its cheese legacy
AS an inveterate cheese addict, yet another scholarly work* on the subject is as welcome to me as a wedge of fresh cheddar. "Cheese-making is nearly as old as civilisation" is the quote that heads the first chapter. Some might go even further and say cheese-making is civilisation.
It seems that the Romans brought their Mediterranean know-how to Britain and Wiltshire became a thriving centre for cheese by the early part of the millennium.
The book charts the progress of the industry, the farms involved, the dairywomen who made the cheese and provides some fascinating indices of old documents and texts concerning Wiltshire agriculture. JE
*Forgotten Harvest. The Story of Cheesemaking in Wiltshire by Avice R Wilson. Thatcher Distributing Group, 10 Azalea Close, Calne, Wilts SN11 OQT (£12.50).