| Can I telephone my order through to you or post you a cheque?No - sorry. All or mail-order business has to be done online otherwise we simply couldn't cope and written orders may go missing. Our internet software helps us with our stock control and is the most secure way to store payment details. We run a busy internet business, a wholesale business and an often hectic shop. We could invest in more staff but then our prices wouldn't be so competitive.How much is the postage for my order?We charge £4.95 per delivery for most mainland UK addresses (even if you order a cheeseboard of £500 we will still only charge the same delivery charge.) We subsidise some of our carriage charges from our internet profits - we certainly do not make money (overall) from our carriage charges.POSTAL SURCHARGE - SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS, SCOTTISH ISLANDS, NORTHERN IRELAND, ISLE OF MAN & ISLE OF WIGHT, - For orders over 2kg (allow 300g for packaging) there is a surcharge of £12 for deliveries to Scottish Islands, Northern Ireland, Isle of Wight, Isle of Man and the following postcodes: All IV, All PA, Perth PH4-41 & PH49-50 - Wick & Thurso KW1-14, KA27-28, AB31-38, AB40-56. Your order to these postcodes will often take longer instead of next day. We do not deliver to the Channel Islands or the Isles of Scilly.Do you have a minimum order value?£20 - more for December despatch dates. Do you deliver to other countries?No, sorry, but the cost of express delivery and customs/import regulations prevent us from doing so.What days do you deliver and how is it sent?We despatch Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays for next day delivery. We pack carefully and insulate cheeses with environmentally-friendly starch-based chips. In warm weather we usually use disposable ice gel packs to keep our cheeses cool in the box. Different despatch dates apply just before Christmas and over the Christmas holiday period. You can place your order with a despatch date in the future, i.e. you can forward order for special occasions such as birthdays, parties etc. Please note that no delivery company is perfect, although we get over 99% next-day delivered. Therefore, if your order is especially date sensitive, please bear this in mind as we cannot be responsible for late deliveries due to circumstances beyond our control. December deliveries often take longer than one day as all courier companies struggle to cope. We would always advise customers to allow an extra day for delivery if your order is for a special occasion such as a wedding or party. We can despatch the same day we receive your order but we require your order by 8am.I want to send a gift - how soon before a birthday or Christmas should I send it?It really depends what you are sending. Whole cheeses such as a whole Cheddar truckle or baby Stilton usually have a shelf life of three weeks or more. If you are sending a mixed selection, the soft cheeses will only last two weeks at the most. In our experience, usually recipients do not mind using the soft cheeses before the event. We often say that you should treat a cheese gift a bit like fresh flowers. One wouldn't send fresh flowers and hope for them to last for three weeks. We do sell lots of cheese related non-food gift items too.Is the amount shown on my internet invoice the amount which will be charged to my credit card?We cannot cut cheese exactly - it is all done by hand. For instance, you may order 500g of Parmesan and our cut may be, for instance, 514g or perhaps 482g. We have an adjustment, therefore, for overcuts/undercuts which will be shown on your final invoice or, in the case of ordering a gift, we will e-mail you the total amount we shall be charging to your credit card. We rarely undercut or overcut extreme amounts!Where's my invoice?In 2006 we decided to exclude any printed invoices in parcels. We e-mail every customer with invoice details and feel an enclosed invoice unnecessary and certainly not a good idea in the case of a gift. We can re e-mail an invoice if, for any reason, you didn't receive our original e-mail.Do I have to pay postage, even if I collect from your shop?No. Your internet invoice will show a delivery charge but we will deduct that amount before we charge your credit card. So we know, just add a message in the 'other comments' box at our checkout, such as 'to collect from your shop on xxxxx day/date'I'm having a cheese and wine party. How much cheese should I budget for?We normally allow 100g per person. Some people are greedy but others eat just a little, so this amount has worked for us over the years. Allow about £2 to £2.50 per head. We can put together a selection of what's particularly good at the moment (see our cheese selections section of our shop) or you can choose each part of your order. Don't have too many small pieces of cheese, a few good hunks is always better. Vary the types (e.g. a soft cheese, a firm pressed cheese, a blue cheese, a goats' milk cheese etc.) and think about colour, strength and texture (often a Double Gloucester, a Leicester or Shropshire Blue add a nice touch of colour).What do 'Suitable for Vegetarians' and 'Made with Unpasteurised Milk' mean by some cheeses?'Suitable for Vegetarians' means that this cheese is suitable for vegetarians because the rennet which starts the cheesemaking process uses a plant extract. Vegetarian cheeses do not taste any different to ones using animal rennet. 'Made with Unpasteurised Milk' means that this cheese is made using unpasteurised, sometimes called, raw milk. Usually it gives the cheese a better flavour and some cheeses can only be made using unpasteurised milk.I'm pregnant, so which cheeses should I avoid?The Chief Medical Officer suggests you avoid soft and blue cheeses, whether pasteurised or unpasteurised. I am not sure whether I will be at home when the goods are delivered. Do I have to sign for them? Yes, someone will have to sign for your delivery if it is sent Special Delivery as the goods are insured. Larger orders which go with couriers (still insured) are allowed to 'be left in shed' or some other instruction. If you know you are going to be out it would be better to have the goods sent either to a place of work or to a friend, relative or neighbour. The delivery infrastructure for Internet orders has not really kept pace with the amount of business over the Internet.I have placed an order but have not received a confirmation e-mail from you. Why is this? We always confirm receipt of orders but at least five per cent of our customers enter an incorrect e-mail address! The insulating and packing chips are a nuisance to dispose of. Why don't you use something re-cyclable? Most of our insulating chips are now made from vegetable starch and dissolve in water.Can I send a cheese selection to a friend as a gift? We have been surprised by how many people have sent cheese selections as gifts, especially if they live outside the UK. It may be worth checking, though, whether the recipients will be there to receive them - we did have one example where the recipient was sent abroad for a fortnight whilst the cheese perished in their local Post Office storeroom! Remember that we can include a personalised card with the message of your choice; enter this in the box marked 'Please enter the greeting you would like included in the order'. Do you have a returns policy?Our Terms & Conditions page gives further details of returns.Do you have a printed catalogue? No - sorry. Please remember that cheesemakers come and go, some cheeses are seasonal, and therefore it is much easier for us to maintain and update our website.How do I store my cheese and how long will it keep?Freshly cut cheese ripened to perfection is a fragile product and once delivery has been made it must be kept cool, especially in very hot weather. Soft cheeses in our shop are, by law, kept refrigerated at temperatures between 5 degrees C and 8 degrees C. You will notice that many manufacturers state on the packaging of individual cheeses that these should be kept below 5 degrees, and we therefore suggest that you follow these guidelines to keep your cheese in the best condition.There are no temperature controls for hard cheeses but, again, these are best kept cool, as excessive warmth can cause mould formation and/or sweating. However, some people do prefer to keep all cheeses in a very cool larder, rather than a refrigerator, and this is up to the individual consumer.Modern kitchens are generally far too warm for the keeping of cheese, but, nevertheless, most cheeses have a better flavour if they are consumed at room temperature. Just as one might bring a red wine from a cool cellar and allow it to spend some time at room temperature, the same can be done with cheese, provided that the cheese is kept covered to prevent it from drying out.Individual cheeses normally have a "Use By" or "Best Before" date. We despatch cut cheeses either vacuum packed or in clingfilm. Vacuum packing suits most firm cheeses very well, and extends their life. Tight vacuum packing is not suitable for some soft cheeses or for blues with a heavy crust, and that is why we generally send these with loose vacuum packing or in clingfilm, and with a shorter shelf life. Very soft blue cheeses tend to leak fluid and therefore these are better vacuum packed. However, once the vacuum packing is opened, then the cheese should be consumed within a few days.To a limited extent, cheese can be frozen. Traditional blue cheeses such as Stilton and Shropshire Blue freeze very well. Firm cheeses - Cheddar types, for example - freeze if grated and then used for cooking. If frozen as a piece, the texture will change and become crumbly. Some of our customers freeze soft cheeses, but this is only successful if the cheeses are fully ripe, as soft cheeses with a chalky texture will never ripen after defrosting.The subject of wrapping cheese when stored is a thorny one, both amongst cheesemongers and their customers. Some people prefer waxed paper as they feel that this lets the cheese "breathe"; others suggest aluminium foil or damp muslin. We find that tightly wrapped clingfilm is perfectly acceptable. Usually, it is a good idea to remember that cheese is made to be EATEN, and that, like a bunch of flowers, it is best enjoyed while fresh and at optimum condition. | ![FAQs]() |
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