We Made It: Cheesemaker James Montgomery

James Montgomery is a difficult man to pin down. When I first call to arrange an interview he’s too busy to talk. I call back only to find he’s in the middle of fixing a broken bailing machine, and when the interview finally takes place it’s to a backdrop of exasperated lowing: “I’ve moved six calves in the time I’ve been talking to you,” he says.

Running Manor Farm, near North Cadbury in Somerset, sounds like a full time job in itself, yet somehow Montgomery manages it and still finds time to produce two of Britain’s finest cheeses. The farm has been making Ogleshield, a washed-rind cheese made with Jersey milk, for around a decade, supplying delis and cheese shops around the country and winning widespread acclaim. But Montgomery and his team are best known for producing Montgomery’s Cheddar, one of only three truly traditional cheddars still being made in the UK and the recipient of so many awards that Montgomery was once named Champion Cheesemaker of the World. Read the full article on the Bruichladdich website.

• Read other articles in We Made It, our series on craft in partnership with Bruichladdich