Meet the makers ….

Billy Kevan - Head Cheesemaker

Behind every wheel of our cheeses is a team devoted to excellence. Blending their time-honoured expertise with a forward-thinking approach, they continue to carry our cheeses confidently into the future.

This month, meet Billy Kevan, our legendary Head Cheesemaker, Billy is only the 4th Head Cheesemaker at Colston Bassett Dairy & has been overseeing the production process for over 26 years.

How did you first become interested in cheesemaking?

I grew up in South West Scotland in the 70s, in a village called Sorbie. Just outside the village there was a Unigate St Ivel site making British Territorial cheese (predominately Cheddar)& my late father was a cheese maker at this site, occasionally in holidays away from school I would go into work with him for a few hours, this was my first real introduction to cheese making.

Which is your favourite - Colston Bassett Stilton or Shropshire Blue?

I like both equally.

 What makes your cheeses unique? 

Stilton Cheese is unique, Colston Bassett Dairy makes its cheese to our own recipe, using only traditional methods, the milk is unadulterated and local to the dairy, and every individual cheese is given the attention it needs to be the best version of Stilton possible.

 What part of the production process is your favourite? 

We hand ladle all our curds to ensure the delicate curds are not damaged, this process is very satisfying.

 What challenges come with producing the Colston Bassett cheeses?

All cheese making is problematic and physically demanding, external influences such as seasonality, weather and people are usually the biggest challenges we face.

 Apart from the Colston Bassett and Shropshire Blue, what is your favourite guilty pleasure or cheese?

Good dark chocolate, which actually pairs well with Blue Stilton.

 How do you balance delivery with the realities of production?

 Stilton is a very seasonal product so 25% of our production will be sold in the 6 week period just before Christmas, managing age profile and stock rotation to allow for these peak sales is difficult.

 What does the future of cheesemaking hold for Colston Bassett? 

Our reputation is built on being artisanal, hand made and high quality - at Colston Bassett will continue to carry this ethos into the future.

 What advice would you give the next generation of cheesemakers?

Leaving school or even switching industries, the reality of cheese making is often streets apart from expectations, it can be unsociable, it is physically demanding and most of the time we are keeping everything clean, the reward is the end product - it’s deeply satisfying to see our cheeses being enjoyed by our customers across the world.