Colston Bassett Shropshire Blue is, perhaps, the most misnamed cheese in the world of British cheeses as it certainly doesn’t hail from Shropshire. It is, in fact, made in Nottinghamshire at the Colston Bassett Dairies, which is also home to their famous and delicious Colston Bassett Stilton.
It has had a difficult rise to being an accepted and sought after cheese. The recipe having been through the hands or 3 or 4 Artisan cheese makers prior to being made by the Colston Bassett Dairies.
It was the brain child of Dennis Biggins a cheese factor based in Whitchurch, Shropshire. In the 1930’s. he came up with the idea of adding naturally found Annatto food colouring to the milk, prior to it being heated, and created this unique and utterly delicious cheese.
Shropshire Blue was “rediscovered” in the 1970s by Andy Williamson, a Scottish cheese maker. Working at the Castle Stuart Dairy, he redeveloped the Shropshire Blue and sold it under the name of Inverness-shire Blue. That was until 1980 when the dairy closed down.
The story of Shropshire Blue is then picked up by two Cheshire farmers and cheese makers; Elliot Hulme and Harry Hanlin. They used the original recipe and kept Shropshire Blue alive, albeit for a short lived period, when it was taken over by the Colston Bassett Dairies.
Colston Bassett Dairy was formed in 1913 by Doctor William Windley. In 1913, while living in the area, he encouraged local farmers to crowd funds dairy.
