Bletch. Stilton has been enjoyed by cheese-lovers for centuries, and now boasts Protected Designation of Origin status (PDO), which means it can only be produced in Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire.
Huh. I would have imagined that you had to make it in Stilton. Stilton, the town that gave the cheese its name, is in Cambridgeshire. You’re not allowed to make stilton in Stilton.
The EU’s system of designated places of origin means you cannot make Stilton in Stilton.
What other evidence do we need to kill the EU?
The way this works is that producers of a product that has broad recognition and association with a region or place submit a case to DEFRA who, if they approve it, will make the application to the EU who will in turn accept or reject the application. This rather suggests that nobody was making Stilton in Stilton at the time the designation was made.
Actually I think Stilton was where the cheese was sold, being quite close to the Great North Road, and it wasn’t traditionally made there.
I believe the cheese is called Stilton because that’s where the wgaons taking the cheese to London stopped overnight. The story goes that when the wagon drivers were asked where they had come in from they said “Stilton” and the name stuck. Not sure how true that is but that was the story I was told by an old friend who used to work at the Stilton creamery in Hartington.
It’s about 90 miles from London, so I doubt horses could pull a wagon that far in a day. Seems very unlikely, esp on unmetalled roads.
Correction. About 70 miles to Central London.
Perhaps Stilton was the distribution hub – transferred from local wagons onto long distance ones. I very much doubt a dedicated wagon would have been taking just Stilton to London, but probably aggregate up multiple suppliers of different products – meaning the wagon started in Stilton.
And if Stilton isn’t included that would be DEFRAs decision – which does still seem a bit silly
“What do they want me to do about all this? They want you to buy stilton instead of imported blue cheese.”
But you’ve just made stilton more expensive by limiting where you can make it and jumping through a load of PDO nonsense.
This stuff never really works because once consumers figure out the alternatives to PDO, they switch. Money for nothing don’t work.
Oh fuck me here we go …. bendy bananas up yours De-Lors well keep our good British rotting teeth clown cars closed shop, old ladies arm pit, shit hole just the way it is thank you …and Monsieur De Bureaucrat if we wish to continue measuring rates of genetic mutation in bushels and eat Arctic roll and Bread made of spit and dust we jolly well will. Now where are my slippers ?
MILDRED WHERE ARE MY SLIPPERS !!?
I SAID…
Ah….
From an old edition of the Daily Mail:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2472681/Village-Stilton-BANNED-making-cheese-bears-officials-refuse-bend-EU-rules.html
Matthew O’Callaghan, from the Melton Mowbray Food Partnership, said: ‘I’m delighted at Defra’s decision. Stilton Cheese originated in the Melton Mowbray area and not in the village of Stilton.’
Presumably they didn’t call it Melton Mowbray cheese because the locals would have difficulty telling the difference between cheese and a pork pie so they had to culturally appropriate the name of a nearby village.
I think that the Melton Mowbray pork pie was the first of these protected geographic indicators in the UK since when there have been no more counterfeit pork pies on sale in service stations across the continent.
You’re quite right, M’Lud. 70 miles with a horse drawn waggon’s 3-4 days, depending on the time of year. Oxen, which were also used, might have been even slower.
What would improve this nation no end Facepainter is your permanent absence from it. Still wondering why you haven’t fucked off to your precious EU esp as “What EU ?” looks likely to be the question soon.
Go while you can scumbag.
Questionable benefits from PDO status. You could make an absolutely shit Stilton-type cheese in Derbyshire and a wonderful one in Stilton.
However, these rules generally lead people to localise and innovate. There’s lots of people making interesting blue cheese all over Britain, there is a reasonable chance that without the restrictions and rewards of PDO status, many would have made generic Stilton instead.
You’d also have a situation where the 90% of the English sparkling wine industry made something called champagne, rather than developing its own identity.
The EU is still shit though.
Stilton was made and restricted to the 3 counties before the UK joined the EU by a trade mark and then subsequently PDO
Cyprus used to export thousands of gallons of Emva Cream Sherry to the UK every year until the EU stopped it.
Now they make shit wine instead…
You can still get Emva Cream ‘Fortified Wine’ but it is apparently nowhere near as popular as ‘Sherry’…
“Questionable benefits from PDO status. You could make an absolutely shit Stilton-type cheese in Derbyshire and a wonderful one in Stilton.”
This is like most cheap Champagne. Nasty stuff. Sparkling wines from the Loire or the Alsace are better than the cheap stuff.
“However, these rules generally lead people to localise and innovate. There’s lots of people making interesting blue cheese all over Britain, there is a reasonable chance that without the restrictions and rewards of PDO status, many would have made generic Stilton instead.”
But that happens anyway. If you’re small, you go for niche and distinctive. What these rules do do, however, is to force people who want to call their thing a Cornish Pasty or a Bordeaux wine to follow rules that others don’t.
“You’d also have a situation where the 90% of the English sparkling wine industry made something called champagne, rather than developing its own identity.”
But it doesn’t really have one. Most of it is produced using the same Traditional Method used in Champagne, Cava and most fizz from Australia and New Zealand. Champagne is mostly just a brand name, restricted to a certain geographical area and with a few rules about grape varieties and added sugar.
Newmania: In international comparisons, British people have the best teeth. Possibly related to independant private contractors providing services free at the point of use funded by the state.
I call the English stuff Shampagne. We’ve had some good’uns.
For non-Stilton blue cheese I can recommend Binham Blue and one that’s new to me, Beenleigh Blue.
As a Brie substitute I enjoy Baron Bigod. The layer of a different colour up the middle is claimed to be deliberate. Whether or not that’s true it’s fine to eat (unlike the unpleasant chalky layer you get inside Brie that’s not been properly kept).
Wot abaht Cheddar? We’ve just bought some Isle of Mull Cheddar. Very good but made rather far afield.
I always thought Stilton was in Huntingdonshire
Newmania –
I don’t know what substance you’re abusing, but it seems clear that whatever it is, it causes brain damage.
@ Fred
It was, until Cambridgeshire made a takeover of Huntingdonshire.
The research that I found more convincing/plausible supports dotdavid.
As for Henry Crun’s story – the cheese would not have been exported to London unless there was already some demand for it so it seems to me that the name “Stilton” for the cheese would pre-date transporting waggonloads of it to London.
Did Cambridgeshire fire all the cabmen?
Stilton, meh. Blue Wensleydale from Leyburn market. Pure ambrosia!
But it doesn’t really have one. Most of it is produced using the same Traditional Method used in Champagne, Cava and most fizz from Australia and New Zealand.
Just because it has the same technique and grape varieties, doesn’t mean it can’t have its own identity.
As the UK has left the EU, does that mean someon in Stilton could make Stilton cheese and just ignore the EU, or does it mean it could only be for consumption within the UK and not for export? Or will they invade to enforce their rules?
The sort of people that care (that their champagne is really from the champagne area) will look at labels and buy the ‘real’ item, those that don’t care will look at price regardless of the label. On that basis a PDO seems of minimal value.
Locally there’s a very good little independent diary that makes a passable Caerphilly cheese, no way I’m going to confuse where it came from regardless of it being called Caerphilly cheese (not that you can buy Caerphilly here very easily)
Champagne is a Veblen good (which is why so much of it ends up in the UK, see also BMWs). Frogs know that the local Crémant is just as good for a fraction of the price, and Spaniards drink Cava. Don’t touch Sekt though (except for mixing with your breakfast OJ).
British sparkling can be excellent, but is priced as though it were Champagne, although you can sometimes find bargains.
@ Tractor Gent
But one of my bitches is that *anyone* can call their cheese “Wensleydale”, the EU condescended to allow the producers of the real stuff to call that “Yorkshire Wensleydale”, making it sound like an inferior copy like “Somerset Brie”.
Newmania you are in clear breach of EU regulations on the construction of straw men.
Stilton, thou shouldst be living at this hour:
England hath need of thee…
Quite right.
The only people who live in Stilton are carpetbaggers.
Let them make carpets.
I don’t like fizzy wines and I’ve tried some high end Champagne, but the subject of English fizzy wines I have it on good authority that our local one by the Langham family is very good but reassuringly expensive.
Disclaimer: I can’t stand the owner.
Brilliant play today in the midfield by dearieme.
@Mr Lud, bis
100 miles a day was often done, they changed the horses at regular intervals at posting/coach houses aka ‘pubs’
https://www.thesocialhistorian.com/royal-mail-history/
100 miles a day was often done, they changed the horses at regular intervals at posting/coach houses aka ‘pubs’
Of course, shoulda put it in the post……
https://www.thesocialhistorian.com/royal-mail-history/
1635: “This meant that a letter sent from Yarmouth to Edinburgh would have to travel through London. However under this scheme, letters were to travel both day and night, and therefore could travel 120 miles in a 24 hour day.”
But interestingly, below – Stilton, it’s south to north, not the other way way round?
1735:
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Mature-Blue-Stilton/114484633
Mr. Cooper Thornhill, owner of the Bell Inn on the Great North Road in the town of Stilton, England, was the original pioneer of Blue Stilton, commonly referred to as “The King of Cheeses.” In 1730, Mr. Thornhill discovered a distinctive blue cheese while visiting a small farm in rural Leicestershire. He fell in love with the cheese and forged a business arrangement that granted the Bell Inn exclusive marketing rights to Blue Stilton. Soon thereafter, wagon loads of cheese were being delivered to the Inn. Since the main stagecoach routes from London to the North of England passed through the village of Stilton, he was able to promote the sale of this cheese and the legend of Stilton rapidly spread far and wide. The extraordinary flavor comes from careful aging for a minimum of three months. This Stilton is produced in Leicestershire and is full, rich and creamy.
But stagecoaches were for a few passengers and some sacks of letters. For freight, it would be like taking a car boot load of Stilton at a time. I doubt you could fit even 1 pallet load in a stagecoach
@ PF.
Thanks
BiND,
“I don’t like fizzy wines and I’ve tried some high end Champagne, but the subject of English fizzy wines I have it on good authority that our local one by the Langham family is very good but reassuringly expensive.”
They are very good, but there’s not much value improvement over Champagne, if at all, and there’s plenty of better value elsewhere.
It really doesn’t make sense to grow wine here. If you’re serious about producing great wine, rather than that it comes from England, buy some land in Romania. People talk about the summers getting warmer, but get a bad summer in Europe and it’s not a great year. A bad summer here and you don’t get a crop at all.
Isn’t Newcastle Brown Are now only made in Hull? :0(
@PF
In 1700s Holland and rest of UK was feeding London, Euopes largest city. This included milk and other short life products. We had a reward based fast and efficient food chain before trains, cars etc
Simplistic: Goods went to London and imports back to rest