Fourth-generation Lancashire family cheesemakers, Butlers Farmhouse Cheeses have received two Great Taste Awards, adding to a growing award-haul in its 90th anniversary year.
Sunday Best, Butlers’ 18-month matured farmhouse Lancashire cheese, was described by judges as “so good we had to go back for more” and Beacon Blue, a sweet, smooth blue goat’s cheese was described as “majestic”. Both cheeses received two-star Great Taste recognitions and join Butlers’ flagship Blacksticks Blue cheese, a one-star Great Taste winner in 2021.
It’s the latest in a series of awards for the family cheesemakers. Last month, Butlers took home 19 medals across cheesemaking, product and packaging categories at the International Cheese & Dairy Awards – a record awards haul for Butlers at the ICDA. Butlers also won two Virtual Cheese Awards in May.
Butlers Farmhouse Cheeses was founded in 1932 when Richard and Annie Butler made just a handful of Lancashire cheeses in the family kitchen. In 2022, its 90th anniversary year, Butlers produce more than 1000 tonnes of farmhouse cheese every year, employ 100 people, supply all major retailers and have an online cheese store delivering nationally, direct from its Lancashire dairy.
Many of Butlers’ cheese recipes have been passed down through four generations, and all cheeses are still made, matured and graded by hand today. Matthew Hall, fourth-generation owner at Butlers Farmhouse Cheeses says, “We’re so pleased to display the iconic black and gold Great Taste logo on two more of our award-winning cheeses. The Great Taste Awards logo is a powerful on-pack prompt for consumers who want to try the very best in food and drink and we hope that it helps even more people find and explore British farmhouse cheese, made in Lancashire.
“All of our awards are much-deserved recognition for every member of our amazing team who put their hearts into making, packing and selling our cheese every single day. We work collectively as an extended family, the same way we have for 90 years – its why being part of a family business like ours is so special.”
The Great Taste Awards
The Great Taste Awards is recognised as a stamp of excellence and actively sought out by food lovers and retailers.
Organised by the Guild of Fine Food, all products are blind tasted with every product removed from its packaging. This year, products from 110 countries around the world were submitted before a robust, layered judging process that took place over 90 days across two locations (Dorset and London) with a panel of more than 500 judges.
