Description
KEY FACTS
Style: Fresh, crumby, fruit blended
Milk: Pasteurised cow’s Milk
Origin: North Yorkshire
Producer: Wensleydale Creamery
Maturation: Approximately 3 weeks
Vegetarian: Yes
Allergens: MILK
THE CHEESE
Yorkshire Wensleydale has been made in the Dales since the twelfth century, when Cistercian monks first brought the recipe from Normandy. The Wensleydale Creamery in Hawes has been the heartland of its production since 1897, using milk from farms on the limestone pastures of Upper Wensleydale — grazing that gives the cheese its distinctive clean, mild, slightly honeyed character.
At around a month old, the fresh Wensleydale is carefully crumbled — a natural quality of the cheese — and sweetened dried cranberries are gently folded through the crumb by hand. Too much mixing and you’d end up with a sticky purple mess. Done right, what you get is a cheese that holds its white, crumbly texture with vivid flecks of cranberry running through it — sweet and fruity up front, giving way to the mild, creamy freshness of the Wensleydale underneath.
ON THE CHEESEBOARD
Wensleydale with Cranberries earns its place on the board as the approachable, crowd-pleasing cheese that everybody reaches for first — and there’s nothing wrong with that. It sits particularly well alongside something sharper and more robust, like our 1057 Scottish Cheddar or Lincolnshire Poacher, where the contrast makes both cheeses taste better.
Serve with water biscuits, oatcakes, or Peter’s Yard sourdough crackers. Fresh grapes, sliced apple, or pear alongside it play beautifully off the fruity notes. For drinks, a glass of something sparkling is the obvious pairing — Prosecco, Crémant, or a good English sparkling wine. A fruity pale ale also works surprisingly well, and if you’re feeling adventurous, a small glass of Tawny Port.
| Serve with | Pair with |
| Fresh grapes, apple or pear | English sparkling wine or Prosecco |
| Oatcakes or water biscuits | Tawny Port |
| Peter’s Yard sourdough crackers | Fruity pale ale |
| Walnuts or pecans | Crisp dry Rosé |
| Grasmere Red Onion Marmalade | Light Pinot Noir |
IN THE KITCHEN
Don’t overlook this cheese as an ingredient. Crumbled over a chicory and walnut salad it adds a sweet, creamy note that lifts the whole dish. It melts beautifully into a sauce for pork or duck — the cranberry cuts through the richness of the meat in a way that works far better than you’d expect. In the summer is goes well crumbled over a salad. At Christmas it’s the natural choice crumbled over a roasted squash and chestnut dish, or stirred through a warm stuffing alongside our Grasmere Lincolnshire Sausagemeat.
The 1.2kg block is particularly good value if you’re catering — or if you simply know you’ll be going back for more, which you will.
STORAGE
Keep refrigerated at 0–5°C. Once cut, wrap in waxed paper or cheese paper and consume within 5 days. Not suitable for freezing. Remove from the fridge 30 minutes before serving to let the flavour open up.
ALLERGENS
Contains: MILK.
