A Cheesemonger's Compendium of British & Irish Cheese

by Ned Palmer, Claire Littlejohn (Illustrator)

FROM THE BESTSELLING CHEESEMONGER-HISTORIAN


A Cheesemonger's Compendium is a fully-illustrated standalone guide to the artisanal and farmhouse cheeses of the British Isles. A must-have for cheese lovers everywhere, it also serves as a handy pocket or shopping bag-sized companion to A Cheesemonger's History of The British Isles.

Containing 168 deliciously readable flavour profiles, a morsel of history and a dash of folklore, there's sure to be something to take your fancy in here. This is the ultimate guide for expert fromagers and enthusiastic novices alike.

Genres: Food, Nonfiction

421 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 11, 2021

About the author

Ned Palmer is a British cheesemonger and author, and a former jazz pianist. He has worked as an affineur for Neal's Yard Dairy

Reviews

[Beth Cato · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful "sequel" to Palmer's A Cheesemonger's History of The British Isles, this book focusing more intensely on current makers across England, Scotland, and Ireland. As an American, I found this book to be a kind of torture as there are so many cheeses listed therein that I simply can't get stateside, but I can only hope that more will be imported in the coming years. Each cheese has about one page of description and reaction by Palmer, his voice ever-exuding friendly enthusiasm, followed by a charming illustration of the cheese. The end of the book has a brief section with advice on things like serving cheeses and assembling cheese boards, plus lists for which cheeses in the book use vegetarian and traditional animal rennets.

[Trisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you seek out local produce when you visit an area? Then this is the book for you! Each cheese has a page to describe it and give a little back story about the how the cheese came to be made and the cheesemakers who makes it. The cheeses are grouped by type of cheese and there are 2 indexes: 1 of cheeses and 1 of cheesemakers. This is useful to compare the range of cheese a maker has.
Need explains how he likes to chat to producers at farmers' markets to hear their stories but that there is often a queue. So the book fills the gap and in a chatty, informative.
As there are many more British cheeses to be sampled, hopefully Ned will produce book 2 to continue the good work

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick and informative read for cheese lovers! I enjoyed learning about the different cheeses make in the UK and Ireland. Before reading this book I underestimated the variety and complexity of British and Irish cheeses (also because I’m a bit of a snob when it comes to cheeses having grown up with Italian and French cheeses).
It’s certainly a nice Xmas present for a cheese fanatic! Strongly recommend it.

[Charlotte Biddle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was born too late for the cheese renaissance. Great book about British and Irish cheeses. Cute little illustrations of each cheese. Loved the history bits like the lady who bathed in milk to protest milk quotas and then became a cheese maker. Would have liked it if there was a cheese from every county, perhaps the cheese renaissance hasn't reached my hometown yet. Maybe a UK tour with every county could be his next book. 

[JFN · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nothing at all wrong with this book. I adore this writer. It’s just not a cover-to-cover read for me, like his other works. Great reference though.