Did you  know that today is National Cheese Lovers’ Day? Some people are more than just cheese “lovers” – they are cheese adorers, cheese worshipers…. we all know one! And what better way to show your appreciation for this fine culinary art than to deck your dinner plate with cheese, cheese and more cheese this evening?

The art of cheese-making goes back centuries, in fact cheese is an ancient food whose history predates written records. That means humans have been making cheese almost as long as there have been humans, and who can blame them? The very earliest evidence of cheese-making goes back to 5,500BC when archaeologists found strainers deposited with milk fats. Who on earth discovered that processing milk in a certain way would lead to the delicacy of cheese is anyone’s guess…. but we are very pleased that they did discover it!

Image by Krasimir Argirov on freeimages.com

There is an ancient legend that tells of an Arab food trader who stored milk in the stomach lining of sheep – in order to transport it and keep it fresh. The story goes that he kept one batch of milk a little too long, and it reacted with the chemicals in the stomach lining of the sheep and turned itself into curds and whey. And whey presto (sorry!), cheese was born.

Well, whatever the reason, we give high praise to the cheese making community of the UK, who provide us with delicious and tasty cheeses, and a huge variety of them too. We are blessed here in Britain to be the home of many world renowned cheeses – Cheddar, Lancashire, Cheshire and Wensleydale to name a few.

And here in Snowdonia we’ve got some of the country’s finest cheese producers on our doorstep – the Black Bomber Cheese by the Snowdonia Cheese Company,  is perhaps the most famous, but there are plenty more to discover.

So, why not get cheesy tonight and celebrate National Cheese Day in suitable cheesy style? Or even better, ditch the cooking and head down to see us here at the Oakeley Arms and see what cheesy delights we can offer you on our delicious and cheesy (only in the best sense…) menu.

Happy National Cheese Day!

Image by Dominic Morel on freeimages.com