The price of cheese (part 2)

[Simpo Two]

I was at a car show yesterday, and sniffing around the food vans looking for lunch. The burger van had a big queue so I went to the Pie & Cheese van next to it. No prices on anything but wot the hell. 'Sausage roll, pork pie and a chunk of stilton please'.

Now he did mention the total, but just as when you're in a pub, your subconscious brain deletes the information before it reaches the conscious brain. Did he really say £19.10?

Towards the end of the show I'm sauntering past again and spot him packing up. So I engaged him in light banter, just in case he'd meant £9.10, and he explained that the sausage roll and pork pie came to £8 and the cheese was the rest. 'Cheese has gone up a lot' he explained, citing the Ukrainian fertiliser prices. 'Ah that must be it, yes' I say, and bade him farewell with a smile.

I get home and look at the lump of stilton. It's not particularly big. I appreciate weapons-grade stilton costs more than in supermarket stuff, maybe £6, but £11.10?

I weighed it. 236 grams. That works out at £47 a kilo. Or is that normal for 'proper' stilton these days?

[mickk]

That does seem expensive unless it's covered in gold leaf, although the 'show food tax' is a killer.

[Simpo Two]

When I was cutting it into portion-sized pieces for freezing (it being too lively to eat all of it before it evolved into something and escaped) much of the outside was a rather ill grey colour. Is that normal?

I've had stilton many times before but this one seems malevolent!

[dudleybloke]

Sounds like good stuff.

[mcflurry]

Simpo Two said:

I get home and look at the lump of stilton. It's not particularly big. I appreciate weapons-grade stilton costs more than in supermarket stuff, maybe £6, but £11.10?

I weighed it. 236 grams. That works out at £47 a kilo. Or is that normal for 'proper' stilton these days?

Waitrose charge between £13 and £24 a kilo, so assuming the £24 stuff is decent, double the price seems too high for me.

[WindyCommon]

Our local butcher sells posh cheese. I bought some on Saturday and nearly fell over when he told me the price. When I got home I wan’t sure whether to put it in the fridge or the safe….

[r3g]

Simpo Two said:

I was at a car show

Sausage roll, pie and slice of cheese = £3. Car show hot food van mark-up = £16.10.

[Simpo Two]

r3g said:

Sausage roll, pie and slice of cheese = £3. Car show hot food van mark-up = £16.10.

Yep; my fault for (a) not being arsed to take a picnic (b) not being arsed to queue up for a burger.

He won't get me again.

Funny thing is, he used to own a deli and off-licence in my town. Hadn't seen him for 20 years but he recognised me! I think I've been outwitted by a pie and cheese man...

[r3g]

Simpo Two said:

Yep; my fault for (a) not being arsed to take a picnic (b) not being arsed to queue up for a burger.

He won't get me again.

Funny thing is, he used to own a deli and off-licence in my town. Hadn't seen him for 20 years but he recognised me! I think I've been outwitted by a pie and cheese man...

In fairness to these event traders, the organisers do change food vans a small fortune for a pitch so the prices they charge have to be obscene to make any profit.

[LooneyTunes]

mcflurry said:

Simpo Two said:

I get home and look at the lump of stilton. It's not particularly big. I appreciate weapons-grade stilton costs more than in supermarket stuff, maybe £6, but £11.10?

I weighed it. 236 grams. That works out at £47 a kilo. Or is that normal for 'proper' stilton these days?

Waitrose charge between £13 and £24 a kilo, so assuming the £24 stuff is decent, double the price seems too high for me.

Paxtons are currently selling it at £32/kg, £47/kg seems very high indeed unless it’s proper artisan stuff.

Good cheese is expensive these days but it’s still worth seeking out. Spend a bit of time recently with a small award winning cheese maker and it was really interesting to see what’s involved and how you can make several really different cheeses by changing the different elements.

Need to go back in the next couple of weeks and pick up some of the cheese we made. Looking forward to seeing how it has turned out.

[sherman]

The good cheesemonger in Edinburgh is selking proper Stilton at £35/kg
https://mellischeese.net/product/blue-stilton-cols...

Their most expensive cheese is £63/kg
https://mellischeese.net/product/moliterno-al-tart...

[droopsnoot]

r3g said:

In fairness to these event traders, the organisers do change food vans a small fortune for a pitch so the prices they charge have to be obscene to make any profit.

Indeed, I used to grab a burger or bacon roll at some of the shows I go to, but I'm taking stuff with me now - not the same, but burgers at local shows are heading for £8 now, and it's not as if they're great big things, and usually not even cooked to order. But the plot cost is very high, and that's the main issue.

[Simpo Two]

sherman said:

The good cheesemonger in Edinburgh is selking proper Stilton at £35/kg
https://mellischeese.net/product/blue-stilton-cols...

Their most expensive cheese is £63/kg
https://mellischeese.net/product/moliterno-al-tart...

I think he said it was Long Clawson, which is a name I've seen in my local supermarket - but I'm sure they sell several different grades: https://www.clawson.co.uk/

[droopsnoot]

Simpo Two said:

I think he said it was Long Clawson, which is a name I've seen in my local supermarket - but I'm sure they sell several different grades: https://www.clawson.co.uk/

I had a pot of something like stilton shavings (basically stilton crammed into a pot) with that name (though I don't remember the "Long" prefix and I can't find the label I kept) from Iceland / Food Warehouse one Christmas, not very expensive but very, very tasty. I haven't seen it there since.

[mickk]

Simpo Two said:

I think he said it was Long Clawson, which is a name I've seen in my local supermarket - but I'm sure they sell several different grades: https://www.clawson.co.uk/

Waitrose Long Clawson is £14.98/kg

[sean ie3]

Pretty sure M&S is Long Clawson, the good stuff is Cawston Bassett and Cropwell Bishop.

[Simpo Two]

sean ie3 said:

Pretty sure M&S is Long Clawson, the good stuff is Cawston Bassett and Cropwell Bishop.

Hmm, maybe it was Cropwell Bishop... whichever it was, I remembered seeing that name in my supermarket when he mentioned it.

[Simpo Two]

Well, I have just eaten some of this Godzilla stilton and my over-riding thought is that it's desperately salty. Maybe under that is some flavour, but it's hard to tell.

[AlexC1981]

Slightly melted stilton is my favourite thing to have on a hamburger.

[soad]

AlexC1981 said:

Slightly melted stilton is my favourite thing to have on a hamburger.

But a slice (or two) doesn’t cost a small fortune.