Lord of the Hundreds

Lord of the Hundreds is a raw sheep’s milk produced by Cliff and Julie Dyball at The Traditional Cheese Dairy in East Sussex, United Kingdom. It takes its name from the Saxon times when tax collectors used to work on behalf of the Landowning Lords, all located in the then 100 shires. (Or modern day counties) in gathering the taxes and dues from the tenant farmers and small holders.

Cliff and Julie Dyball purchased the dairy in 2002 after careers in finance and insurance, The Traditional Cheese Dairy focuses on making hand-made raw milk cheeses. Located in the village of Stonegate in East Sussex, UK, the dairy produces cheeses made from the cow, sheep and goat’s milk of local single herd family farms. Today, the dairy produces about five tons of cheese every month that they sell at local farmer’s markets as well as stores throughout England. Recently, they have started to export to the United States and Canada.

This hard cheese is square in shape and has an open texture due to it being unpressed before being ladled into baskets. The aging process takes six to eight months during which time the cheeses are rubbed and turned every other day to create a light grey rind.

Underneath its rind is a golden yellow paste or body that deepens as it gets closer to the rind. The texture is dry and a touch grainy with flavours of roasted hazelnuts and salty caramel, along with fresh grassy notes.

Lord of the Hundred’s sweet and savoury flavour pairs very good with medium-bodied wines and also light ports

This celebrated cheese has won many awards including Gold medal (in 2011) and silver medal  (in 2012) at The British Cheese Awards and bronze medal at the World Cheese Awards 2014.