A very cheesy day, National Cheddar Day is celebrated annually on February 13. Created by the Tillamook County Creamery Cooperation, this day celebrates the amazing cheese type called cheddar, and all its edible products. Cheddar cheese hails from the actual city of Cheddar in Somerset, South England.
HISTORY OF NATIONAL CHEDDAR DAY
Cheddar cheese accounts for more than a third of all the cheese sold in the United States and is a top choice in most cheese selections. It is unique for the peculiar way it’s made and hails from England.
Cheddar Gorge on the edge of the village, Cheddar in Somerset, England, is home to the origin of cheddar cheese. The gorge has several caves that provide the perfect humidity and steady temperature for maturing the cheese. The popular cheese was first bought by the royal family and is said to have been brought to Britain by the Romans from the Cantal region of France.
The 19th-century father of cheddar cheese, Joseph Harding, was central to the modernization and standardization of Cheddar cheese. He encouraged dairy hygiene and modern cheese-making techniques. The ‘Joseph Harding method’ was the first Cheddar production method based upon scientific principles.
The process called cheddaring is what separates this cheese from others. Cheddaring is an additional step in the production of Cheddar cheese which is done after heating. The curd is kneaded with salt, cut into cubes to drain the whey, and then stacked and turned. The result you get from this step is a denser, crumbly texture.
In 1894, renowned cheesemaker Peter McIntosh brought his cheese-making skills to Tillamook County, Oregon, and in due time was dubbed the Cheese King of the Coast. The local farmers have since formed the farmer-owned cooperative we know today as the Tillamook County Creamery Association. In 2019, the association founded National Cheddar Day on February 13. The purpose was to celebrate Tillamook’s 110th birthday and share a passion for cheddar with cheese-lovers nationwide.
