Mongers in Middlesmoor: - A trip to visit the makers of Stonebeck Wensleydale
On Monday 20th July, Andrew and Sally Hatton opened their gates to welcome cheesemongers from across the country to Low Riggs Farm, to host a guided walking tour of the land, dairy and everything that makes Stonebeck Wensleydale so unique. Ellen, a member of our Ecommerce team, reflects on how our team got on.
A view across the Nidderdale moors from Middlesmoor
With hire cars collected, driving snacks purchased and keep-cups filled, our team of 10 were ready and raring to leave the Maturation arches at 6:30am sharp for the long drive up to Yorkshire. Early starts like this are not unusual in our line of work, but are certainly made easier by the prospect of replacing views of London concrete with the rolling Yorkshire Dales and getting to spend time with some of our producers, friends and customers.
After 5 hours of driving, fuelled by Quince Bakery’s oat cookies (being able to bring the occasional wholesale customer along certainly has its perks) and Heart FM, we arrived in Middlesmoor and were greeted by Andrew and his daughter Rachael, who were handing out names tags so everyone could get acquainted. The sun was shining and there was a lovely breeze, the likes of which us Londoners hadn’t experienced for weeks. So, after sun cream top ups, some light teasing of people’s sunglasses choices and re-lacing of hiking boots, we set off, keen to learn as much as we could about this Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and the impact the surroundings have on the make of this cheese.
Walking through the ferns towards the stream at the bottom of the farm
Low Riggs is a hillside farm in Upper Nidderdale, and is made up of 460 acres of land that includes woodland, pasture, meadows and moorland alike. Although a challenging landscape (winters are cruel and the area experiences particularly high rainfall), the natural variation of terrain and biodiversity that Andrew and Sally have encouraged since taking the farm on in 2008 has been key in keeping the farm resilient and profitable. Since the land isn’t conducive to growing arable crops, they decided to graze a small number of cattle and sheep on the land and then started making cheese in 2018, as a way to add the most value to the raw milk yield produced from a herd of less than 30 cows.
The Hatton's herd, grazing in the afternoon sun
The cows in question are Northern Dairy Shorthorns, a rare breed of cattle native to the north of England. The herd is now 35 strong and, with only about 150 heifers registered in the UK, Andrew & Sally take great responsibility in honouring and preserving not only the breed, but the true expression of their milk. The cows are outside for 9 months of the year and only produce milk from April to October, in line with the seasonal model of how Wensleydale used to be made on the farm until the 1960s. For a herd that are fed on approximately 95% grazed grass, the variety of what grows within their fields is hugely responsible in influencing the character of this Wensleydale. As we walked through the farmland, the variety of what was growing spread out before us like a patchwork quilt of greens, yellows, purples and pinks, bordered by 2 kilometres of dry-stone walls. Andrew pointed out that these walls (a favoured habitat for nesting birds) allowed them to compartmentalise the farm into 15-16 fields and manage the grazing system accordingly. We walked through some of the 40 acres of wildflower which, like the hay meadows, are not subject to any artificial fertiliser. These wonderful, species-rich fields solely contain seeds that are native to the Yorkshire Dales, which is yet another reason why Stonebeck Wensleydale is such a great example of a cheese that represents its terroir in its entirety.
Biodiversity, as far as the eye could see
We listened out for birdsong as we climbed uphill towards the farm gates, and were greeted by a flock of house martins overhead, swooping back and forth from the farmhouse windows (“they were here first, so we felt we had no right to evict them!”). A small group of calves were sunning themselves in a corner near the house, and rewarded our hiking efforts with some vaguely curious glances. The real reward came around the corner, where we saw Sally behind two huge urns of Yorkshire tea (when in Rome), and a table laden with buttered tea loaf and biscuits. Over the garden wall, some of the heifers and EasyCare sheep came to say hello as Andrew told us all about their efforts to be as eco-friendly on the farm as possible. They are 81% solar power efficient and use all waste water to irrigate the fields, as they don’t use any sanitation products that contain chlorine.
Yorkshire tea and (homemade!) biscuits
This approach is quite unique within the local agricultural community the Hattons find themselves in, so they are grateful to be supported by the likes of the Rare Breed Survival Trust and the Specialist Cheesemaker’s Association (SCA), as it isn’t easy to make a seasonal product from such a rare breed to a consistently high standard. For example, the team don't have the space or resources to make cheese every day, so instead opt for a day on, day off approach. The cows are milked once a day so, on a cheesemaking day, the warm milk goes directly into the cheesemaking vat with the chilled milk from the day before added alongside it.
The view from the milking parlour
It is in that milking parlour (a 1930s set that only milks six at a time, with some cows having their favourite stations), looking out at the sunrise over the Dales at 5:30am each morning that Andrew counts his blessings that he and Sally get to do this for a living. As first-generation tenant farmers, they did not take on the farm lightly and extensively researched traditional cheesemaking methods in the region beforehand. Sally interviewed a lady called Mabel Peacock (who was 101 at the time), who recalled making cheese with her mother in the early 20th century. Records showed Wensleydale was enjoyed: “young, creamy, rich and spreadable” then, and that the make fitted into the rhythm of daily farm and family life. This laid the foundation for Stonebeck Wensleydale, as Andrew and Sally have embroiled this approach into their recipe and systems, too. Sally rounded up the day by giving out tasters of some of the new batches, whilst showing us some of her favourite cheese books. One of which was a black and white picture book on Dales crafts, where photos of drained cheese curds hanging in muslin cloth bags are featured, mirroring how the cheese is still made on the farm today.
A picture from the Dales craft book, showing curds being drained in a muslin
With a petite make room and small (but perfectly formed) maturation unit in a shipping container, it is clear that making a raw milk Wensleydale is a labour of love for the Hatton family. I hope it was somewhat gratifying, then, having a group of cheese obsessives visit and pour over every detail they shared with us. As I hastily made my way back through the farm to the carpark (having spent too long chatting with the Hattons) alone, hunk of Stonebeck in tow, I got a rare chance to see nature somewhat uninterrupted on Low Riggs Farm. Butterflies, hares, pheasants and bees could be seen everywhere I looked; a true testament to how a varied, thriving ecosystem is fundamental to making truly great cheese.
If you look very closely, you might be able to see lots of young pheasants!