Sampling cheese at last year’s festival
When: 15th – 23rd September 2018
Where: At venues across the Yorkshire Dales
£: Ticket prices vary, depending on the event. Some events are free
What is it?
The Yorkshire Dales Cheese Festival returns this month with double the number of events and activities following last year’s inaugural event. This year’s festival will take place between Saturday 15th and Sunday 23rd September across the Dales.
One of the new events will be putting a cheesy slant on the War of the Roses, by holding a week-long tasting competition, pitting fromage from Yorkshire against Lancashire-produced cheeses. The Bolton Arms, at Redmire near Leyburn, will be asking guests to taste cheeses from each county and then vote for their favourite during the festival.
This year, there are more than 50 events lined-up for visitors to satisfy their cheese cravings, whilst savouring some of the best beauty spots in the National Park and Nidderdale’s Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
While Yorkshire-produced cheese will take top billing, a vast array of locally-produced food will also be celebrated; as restaurants, cafés, shops, visitor attractions and dairy specialists will hold talks, demonstrations, savoury afternoon teas and six-course gourmet tasting menus.
An array of local cheese
The Wensleydale Creamery at Hawes, home of Wallace and Grommit’s favourite cheese, will set the celebrations rolling with its two-day mini Cheese Festival on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th September. The event will feature 35 stalls of local produce and all-things-cheese, as well as cookery demonstrations, tastings and pairings, butter making and live music.
Radiating out from this hub, visitors can then spend time over the coming days enjoying the delights of cheese while taking in the scenic landscape at 20 spots; stretching from Sedbergh and Bolton Castle on the northern edge of the Yorkshire Dales, through to Pateley Bridge and Masham in Nidderdale.
Events will include a cycle ride through the heart of Wensleydale, guided walks that include drop-ins to dairy farms, a demonstration of 1930’s farmhouse cheese-making and talks on the dairying heritage of Wensleydale.
Then, on Saturday 22nd September to close the whole food celebration, there will be a Beer and Beef Festival at Springhill Farm near Masham. It will feature locally-reared Dexter beef and regional ales, with an eclectic mix of live music and entertainment.
More info: www.yorkshiredales.org.uk/visit-the-dales/cheese-festival-18
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