British cheeses and cider

I suppose I shouldn’t say this coming from the West Country but I often forget about cider when I’m thinking about cheese pairings. Not that I don’t enjoy it but there always seem more complex drinks with a wider range of flavours to experiment with.

But last week I was tasting a range of Somerset-based ciders from a producer called The Orchard Pig with cheese and was struck by just how well they went.

Standout matches were their Dry Table Cider with one of my favourite cheeses Gorwydd Caerphilly, Medium Table Cider with Keen’s cheddar (although I thought it would have worked still better with a slightly milder, mellower cheese like Hafod or Lincolnshire Poacher) and most interesting of all a new lighter 4.2% sparkling cider (the others are 6.5%) with Stichelton, an unpasteurised version of Stilton. (I wouldn’t draw the conclusion from that that all light ciders go with blues: Stichelton is exceptionally creamy in texture which worked particularly well with this palate-cleansing style)

The Orchard Pig also has a range of apple juices, one of which - an off-dry blend of Jonagold and Bramley - was absolutely delicious with the Keen’s.

Chicken salad and real apple juice

Yesterday finally felt as if spring had come. After weeks of unsettled and unseasonably cool weather it was warm and balmy, rich with the scent of blossom. We went out with friends to the village of Wrington just outside Bristol to follow an ‘art trail’ of exhibitions by local artists. (Yes, I bought something - a delightful picture of radishes by a talented collage artist called Anne Carpenter)

We had lunch in a cafe in Barley Wood walled garden which wasn’t amazing apart from the heavenly setting but they did serve a really fabulous artisanal apple juice made from their own fruit (a mixture of Bramleys, Blenheim Gold and one other variety I can’t remember). It was perfect with a chicken salad - fresh tasting and tart.

Afterwards we wandered through the apple orchards which were full of pink and white blossom, the ground studded with clumps of bluebells. After a sad week last week attending a memorial for a very good friend it felt great to be alive.