WELCOME TO THE CHEeSE AGENT
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Artisan and local cheeses for WeSt Berkshire and North Hampshire
Based in Newbury UK
Hi, I'm Tony and I sell cheeses at local village markets in West Berkshire and North Hampshire.
With the closure of all the independent delis in Newbury and Hungerford there's still a place to get artisan and local cheeses, either by visiting the markets or contacting me on-line.
I am very much a "hobbyist" business, doing this for the love of the product and the people who produce such great cheeses and as such work at a scale that I'm happy with, giving great customer service without it taking over my life.
2021: See below for updates about how I am operating alongside Covid-19 restrictions.
With the closure of all the independent delis in Newbury and Hungerford there's still a place to get artisan and local cheeses, either by visiting the markets or contacting me on-line.
I am very much a "hobbyist" business, doing this for the love of the product and the people who produce such great cheeses and as such work at a scale that I'm happy with, giving great customer service without it taking over my life.
2021: See below for updates about how I am operating alongside Covid-19 restrictions.
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UPDATE 26/01/21:
The Newbury cheese clubs have resumed for 2021 and will run at least until Easter, as the prospect of village markets resuming before then seems pretty remote at the moment.
Due to the success of the Christmas cheeseboard offer to non-Club members, I have extended this service into 2021 and details can be found on the Cheeseboard Orders 2021 page. Note that only a limited selection of cheeses are offered there, as I cannot store too much stock at the moment. Guests cheeses will appear depending on demand from the main Club. So the cheese description list does not represent what I have in stock or what I can get.
UPDATE 04/10/20:
Alas the late Sept Woolton Hill and October Silchester markets were both cancelled due to worries from Hampshire Council about meeting current regulations about gatherings. Both markets had extensive risk assessments in place, but apparently the surge in case numbers in September was enough to prompt a more risk averse approach.
Both markets were operating outdoors, so now that autumn and winter are with us it's unclear if they are viable as the weather closes in. Several Christmas events are already cancelled as their indoor space is too cramped and organisers do not have the scope to set up outdoors with enough cover for customers.
The Newbury Cheese clubs will be running until Christmas, and there are a few monthly delivery spaces available if anyone is interested. Use the contact form to check what is available.
The cost of cheese club will be £14 from October to cover increased costs, especially as many small dairies remain unable to resume full production due to space restrictions on their sites preventing workplace social distancing for staff. Consequently they are raising their wholesale prices and some weeks supplies can be interrupted, so I have substitute products in line to cover this.
Christmas deliveries:
I am working on a Christmas cheese list, somewhat reduced from the standard list, to offer for deliveries later in the year. I now have access to my storage area, so it's becoming easier to hold stock and I plan to extend the home delivery service during December.
I can now do some one-off orders - if I hear about what you want on a Monday I can see what can be supplied that same week (on Wednesday or Thursday). Any queries after that usually have to wait until the following week.
UPDATE 21/07/20: Markets resume
Some village markets are resuming in our post-lockdown world. They are:
Sat 25th July 11am - 2pm Woolton Hill market - new venue on the playoing fields of Woolton Hill primary school that is next door to the usual Village Hall venue to enable social distancing and slightly later timings to help stall holders set up.
Sat 1st August - 10am - 12:30pm - Silchester market - again an open air venue on the Green opposite the village hall site.
Hope to see some of you there.
UPDATE 13/05/20:
Newbury Lockdown Cheese Club FULL / Producer News:
I now have over 40 members for the cheese club, so will have to close memberships until I know I can supply everyone who has signed up. Next week I'll be doing the first deliveries to the Woolton Hiill/Highclere group and Central Newbury group.
I have a waiting list for other customers who have expressed an interest and if anyone drops out or if I can expand they will take priority to join.
I'm sorry but I cannot fulfill one-off orders at present as I have a variable supply chain and no storage.
What is the Cheese Club?
In the absence of markets, I launched the "Newbury Cheese Club", where I will supply 4 cheeses (generally a blue, brie, cheddar and guest) every fortnight to those who sign up. The cost is £12 per delivery and you get 500-600g of cheese each time. There will be a mixture of true artisan and more general cheeses, but all from smaller dairies and products you don't always get in the supermarkets. I delivery directly to your house, with payment by bank transfer after each delivery. I have a Facebook Group for club members or can email members with information about each delivery.
I will run this whilst interest lasts and until lockdown ends and probably beyond since I doubt many of the local village markets I do will re-open until well into the summer. At the moment this is only running in Newbury and nearby villages, e.g. Woolton Hill, Highclere, Hamstead Marshall.
UPDATE 18/03/20:
Understandably all local markets have been cancelled for the foreseeable future and I do not intend, at present, to offer a home delivery service until I see whether I can get stock reliably.
Look out for further posts and keep safe. Tony
UPDATE 12/02/20:
NEW Location: Starting on Tuesday 18th Feb I shall be running a weekly stall at Mrs B's Kitchen in Newbury as a trial for the next two months into April.
They have a space at their cafe on Faraday Road, Newbury for stalls and Tuesday is Food day. I shall be there from 10am to 3pm (or possibly beyond).
You can find out more at https://www.mrsb.kitchen/copy-of-our-services or on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/MrsBKitchen/
AND: Following positive feedback after the first regular SustainHUBle market at Wash Common, this event will now run until 3:30pm rather than finish at 2pm. Again this is a trial run to see how busy we are at this later time, which now covers the Falkland School run.
Markets for 2020 resumed on Saturday 25th at Woolton Hill.
The full year schedule can now be found on the Event Calendar page. New additional - Newbury Rugby Club stalls for the remainder of the 2019/20 season.
The Newbury cheese clubs have resumed for 2021 and will run at least until Easter, as the prospect of village markets resuming before then seems pretty remote at the moment.
Due to the success of the Christmas cheeseboard offer to non-Club members, I have extended this service into 2021 and details can be found on the Cheeseboard Orders 2021 page. Note that only a limited selection of cheeses are offered there, as I cannot store too much stock at the moment. Guests cheeses will appear depending on demand from the main Club. So the cheese description list does not represent what I have in stock or what I can get.
UPDATE 04/10/20:
Alas the late Sept Woolton Hill and October Silchester markets were both cancelled due to worries from Hampshire Council about meeting current regulations about gatherings. Both markets had extensive risk assessments in place, but apparently the surge in case numbers in September was enough to prompt a more risk averse approach.
Both markets were operating outdoors, so now that autumn and winter are with us it's unclear if they are viable as the weather closes in. Several Christmas events are already cancelled as their indoor space is too cramped and organisers do not have the scope to set up outdoors with enough cover for customers.
The Newbury Cheese clubs will be running until Christmas, and there are a few monthly delivery spaces available if anyone is interested. Use the contact form to check what is available.
The cost of cheese club will be £14 from October to cover increased costs, especially as many small dairies remain unable to resume full production due to space restrictions on their sites preventing workplace social distancing for staff. Consequently they are raising their wholesale prices and some weeks supplies can be interrupted, so I have substitute products in line to cover this.
Christmas deliveries:
I am working on a Christmas cheese list, somewhat reduced from the standard list, to offer for deliveries later in the year. I now have access to my storage area, so it's becoming easier to hold stock and I plan to extend the home delivery service during December.
I can now do some one-off orders - if I hear about what you want on a Monday I can see what can be supplied that same week (on Wednesday or Thursday). Any queries after that usually have to wait until the following week.
UPDATE 21/07/20: Markets resume
Some village markets are resuming in our post-lockdown world. They are:
Sat 25th July 11am - 2pm Woolton Hill market - new venue on the playoing fields of Woolton Hill primary school that is next door to the usual Village Hall venue to enable social distancing and slightly later timings to help stall holders set up.
Sat 1st August - 10am - 12:30pm - Silchester market - again an open air venue on the Green opposite the village hall site.
Hope to see some of you there.
UPDATE 13/05/20:
Newbury Lockdown Cheese Club FULL / Producer News:
I now have over 40 members for the cheese club, so will have to close memberships until I know I can supply everyone who has signed up. Next week I'll be doing the first deliveries to the Woolton Hiill/Highclere group and Central Newbury group.
I have a waiting list for other customers who have expressed an interest and if anyone drops out or if I can expand they will take priority to join.
I'm sorry but I cannot fulfill one-off orders at present as I have a variable supply chain and no storage.
What is the Cheese Club?
In the absence of markets, I launched the "Newbury Cheese Club", where I will supply 4 cheeses (generally a blue, brie, cheddar and guest) every fortnight to those who sign up. The cost is £12 per delivery and you get 500-600g of cheese each time. There will be a mixture of true artisan and more general cheeses, but all from smaller dairies and products you don't always get in the supermarkets. I delivery directly to your house, with payment by bank transfer after each delivery. I have a Facebook Group for club members or can email members with information about each delivery.
I will run this whilst interest lasts and until lockdown ends and probably beyond since I doubt many of the local village markets I do will re-open until well into the summer. At the moment this is only running in Newbury and nearby villages, e.g. Woolton Hill, Highclere, Hamstead Marshall.
UPDATE 18/03/20:
Understandably all local markets have been cancelled for the foreseeable future and I do not intend, at present, to offer a home delivery service until I see whether I can get stock reliably.
Look out for further posts and keep safe. Tony
UPDATE 12/02/20:
NEW Location: Starting on Tuesday 18th Feb I shall be running a weekly stall at Mrs B's Kitchen in Newbury as a trial for the next two months into April.
They have a space at their cafe on Faraday Road, Newbury for stalls and Tuesday is Food day. I shall be there from 10am to 3pm (or possibly beyond).
You can find out more at https://www.mrsb.kitchen/copy-of-our-services or on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/MrsBKitchen/
AND: Following positive feedback after the first regular SustainHUBle market at Wash Common, this event will now run until 3:30pm rather than finish at 2pm. Again this is a trial run to see how busy we are at this later time, which now covers the Falkland School run.
Markets for 2020 resumed on Saturday 25th at Woolton Hill.
The full year schedule can now be found on the Event Calendar page. New additional - Newbury Rugby Club stalls for the remainder of the 2019/20 season.
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NEW CHEESES - update 28/09/18:
I am delighted to announce that I will be stocking a selection of excellent goat's cheeses from Beau Farm, Bramley in Hampshire.
Beau Farm is located on a private estate in Bramley, Hampshire, just north of Basingstoke, where Margaretha is producing a fine selection of goats cheeses.
There’s a Gouda based on a recipe of her Dutch grandmother’s, a soft goat’s Brie and a lactic soft cheese with a dusting of ash.
Also available are flavoured Gouda’s - with cumin, fenugreek, garlic and herbs and lavender (yes that's right, lavender).
I'll have a selection of these cheeses at markets in October, starting at Woolton Hill on Saturday 29th Sept. Please come along and taste!
Find out more at: https://beaufarm.co.uk/ and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/BeauFarmGoats/
See some photos below of the cheese and Margaretha (on the right) and Sedef, the cheesemakers
NEW CHEESES - update 28/09/18:
I am delighted to announce that I will be stocking a selection of excellent goat's cheeses from Beau Farm, Bramley in Hampshire.
Beau Farm is located on a private estate in Bramley, Hampshire, just north of Basingstoke, where Margaretha is producing a fine selection of goats cheeses.
There’s a Gouda based on a recipe of her Dutch grandmother’s, a soft goat’s Brie and a lactic soft cheese with a dusting of ash.
Also available are flavoured Gouda’s - with cumin, fenugreek, garlic and herbs and lavender (yes that's right, lavender).
I'll have a selection of these cheeses at markets in October, starting at Woolton Hill on Saturday 29th Sept. Please come along and taste!
Find out more at: https://beaufarm.co.uk/ and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/BeauFarmGoats/
See some photos below of the cheese and Margaretha (on the right) and Sedef, the cheesemakers
UPDATE 17/07/17:
Searching for new cheeses:
A few weeks ago I received an email from Artisan Diary in Wincanton saying they were having to stop production of their cheeses due to a family illness. It's a reminder that many small dairies are just that - a few family members and employees working together - and even a small disruption can have a huge impact. So many market favourites - Old Tower cheddar, Lynchwood, Woolbury blue and the wonderful "Unnamed" sheeps Gouda are no longer available.
The cheese list has been updated to reflect that these cheeses are no longer available. I hope to add new ones before Christmas.
So I am now starting the search for new dairies to fill the gap. At the moment north Oxfordshire and the Cotswolds look this most likely locations with several cheese producers in the area, so hopefully new cheeses will be appearing for tasting and customer approval in the near future.
Searching for new cheeses:
A few weeks ago I received an email from Artisan Diary in Wincanton saying they were having to stop production of their cheeses due to a family illness. It's a reminder that many small dairies are just that - a few family members and employees working together - and even a small disruption can have a huge impact. So many market favourites - Old Tower cheddar, Lynchwood, Woolbury blue and the wonderful "Unnamed" sheeps Gouda are no longer available.
The cheese list has been updated to reflect that these cheeses are no longer available. I hope to add new ones before Christmas.
So I am now starting the search for new dairies to fill the gap. At the moment north Oxfordshire and the Cotswolds look this most likely locations with several cheese producers in the area, so hopefully new cheeses will be appearing for tasting and customer approval in the near future.
New Cheeses for Autumn 2016:
Left to right:
Norton & Yarrow Cheese, Oxfordshire
Sinodun Hill - a ripened goats’ cheese pyramid, matured for up to 21 days. A flavoursome cheese with a light nutty edge and a smooth texture. Bronze medal winner at 2016 British cheese awards
Brightwell Barrow - a fresh unpasteurised goat cheese, it has a light, mousse-like, creamy texture and fresh, citrus flavour. Gold medal winner at 2016 British cheese awards
Nettlebed Creamery, Oxfordshire
Bix - a soft, unpasteurised, triple cream cheese
Saint Bartholomew - a semi-hard, unpasteurised organic cheese made to an alpine recipe. It has a deep, nutty flavour with fruity, caramel overtones and a smooth texture. The cheese is matured for 5-6 months.
Left to right:
Norton & Yarrow Cheese, Oxfordshire
Sinodun Hill - a ripened goats’ cheese pyramid, matured for up to 21 days. A flavoursome cheese with a light nutty edge and a smooth texture. Bronze medal winner at 2016 British cheese awards
Brightwell Barrow - a fresh unpasteurised goat cheese, it has a light, mousse-like, creamy texture and fresh, citrus flavour. Gold medal winner at 2016 British cheese awards
Nettlebed Creamery, Oxfordshire
Bix - a soft, unpasteurised, triple cream cheese
Saint Bartholomew - a semi-hard, unpasteurised organic cheese made to an alpine recipe. It has a deep, nutty flavour with fruity, caramel overtones and a smooth texture. The cheese is matured for 5-6 months.
