Bluemin White Awarded 3 Stars at the Great Taste Awards... Again!

Our much-loved Bluemin White has once again been awarded 3 Stars at the Great Taste Awards – the highest accolade available and one of the greatest honours in the food and drink industry.

Often described as the 'Oscars of the food world', the Great Taste Awards are a celebration of outstanding flavour, and this year, more than 15,000 products were blind tasted by hundreds of expert judges, with just 2% achieving the coveted 3-star rating.

To see our Bluemins receive this exceptional award for a second time is a tremendous honour and places it amongst the very finest food and drink products in the UK.

A history of award-winning flavour

This latest success adds to an already remarkable list of accolades, for these delicious little truckles.

Bluemin White first received the coveted 3 Great Taste Stars back in 2013, before going on to win Super Gold and Gold medals at the World Cheese Awards, Champion Speciality Cheese at the Great Yorkshire Show, and Gold at the British & Irish Cheese Awards.

A cheese born from a new generation

Bluemin White has always held a very special place in our hearts here at Shepherds Purse.

Created in 2010 by our Joint Managing Director, Katie Matten (née Bell), it marked an important milestone, as it was the very first cheese Katie developed after following in the footsteps of her mum, Shepherds Purse founder Judy.

Inspired by Judy's pioneering spirit, Katie wanted to create something completely different. Rather than another traditional blue, she set out to craft a soft, blue mould-ripened, Brie-style cheese that was rich, creamy and approachable, while still offering the distinctive character and complexity that blue cheese lovers enjoy and Shepherds Purse had become renowned for.

The result was Bluemin White – a cheese unlike anything else in our range.

Crafted with patience and care

Every Bluemin White is handmade in small truckles here on the family farm in North Yorkshire using locally sourced cow's milk.

Each one is hand-salted, hand-turned and individually graded by our cheesemakers, continuing the traditional craftsmanship that has been at the heart of Shepherds Purse for almost four decades.

Unlike a traditional blue cheese, we don't pierce the Bluemins to encourage blue veining, but instead, each cheese is carefully matured in our ripening rooms, where it naturally develops its beautiful velvety blue rind.

Over five weeks, the cheese slowly ripens from the outside in, creating an irresistibly soft, silky centre, a delicately subtle nuttiness and a wonderful melt-in-the-mouth texture. Heaven!

A cheese for every occasion

Bluemin White has become one of our most versatile cheeses…. and one of our favourites too.

Its creamy, mellow character make it an ideal introduction for those in two minds about blue cheese, whilst its delicious depth of flavour keeps seasoned cheese lovers coming back for more.

It’s perfect served simply on a cheeseboard alongside fresh fruit, honey and artisan crackers, a crisp cider or a glass of fizz, but our favourite way to enjoy it is baked until gloriously gooey for the ultimate sharing dish. 

Drizzle with local honey straight out of the oven and add a handful of walnuts for crunch before serving immediately with crackers and bread to scoop up the melted middle. Delicious!

Try it for yourself

In celebration of this fantastic achievement, we've created our new Baked Bluemin Box, a very special collection which includes three of our Bluemins alongside artisan crackers, a jar of Yorkshire Blossom honey and a handcrafted ceramic baking dish, designed to allow you to perfectly bake these little wheels of pleasure to perfection at home. 

We've partnered with a small, family-run ceramics studio just down the road from our farm here in North Yorkshire to create these beautiful, bespoke dishes, and each one has been individually hand-thrown and decorated, making every piece completely unique and something to treasure for years to come. They're available to buy now and would make a lovely gift or, just a little treat for yourself!