Our carefully chosen selection of hard cheeses offers deep, complex flavours and exceptional long finishes. Artisan cheesemakers treasure traditional methods and recipes. They age their Cheddars and hard cheeses with time-honoured techniques for many months — and, in some cases, years. This allows each cheese’s unique texture, flavours, and aromas to develop. Our mouthwatering range includes rich, bold, and tangy cheeses with notes of nuttiness, earthiness, caramel, and grass.
No cheeseboard is complete without at least one variety of hard cheese — especially one with big, bold flavours. Pair our hard cheeses with thick, dark chutneys or crunchy apple slices for a mouthwatering end to your meal.
This Comté Vieux AOP is matured for 18 months, twice as long as standard Comté. Longer maturation gives this nutty cheese additional sweetness and depth of flavour. The texture is firmer too with a studding of crystals that adds a delicate crunch. Made in Franche-Comté in the Jura mountains, our Comté Vieux is made from the raw milk of Montbéliarde cows in accordance with strict AOP regulations. Read more
£8.65
Weydeland VSOC Gouda is made in the Woerden region of Holland on the banks of the river Oude Rijn. Deep orange in colour with visible salt and protein crystals, this outstanding extra mature Gouda has been aged for an incredible three years (1000 days). The ‘VSOC’ in its name stands for ‘Very Superior Old Cheese!’ Weydeland VSOC Gouda has a delicious nutty caramel flavour and long finish, perfectly complemented by its crystalline crunch. Read more
£8.50
Godminster Vintage Cheddar hails from Bruton, Somerset, where it is made with pasteurised cow’s milk from the farm's own organic dairy herd to a traditional 70-year-old recipe. This firm Cheddar is matured for up to twelve months to produce a full, rounded flavour and an exceptionally smooth, creamy texture. Rich and buttery, it has a long finish without the acidity often associated with vintage Cheddars. Encased in distinctive burgundy wax, Godminster Cheddar is shaped in round truckles – and seasonally as pretty hearts. Read more
£7.75
Le Gruyère has been produced in the Jura region of Switzerland since the 12th century. Today, this authentic AOP regulated Le Gruyère Reserve is still made to the same traditional recipe — and no fondue is complete without it! Le Gruyère Reserve is matured for longer than standard varieties to develop greater depth of flavour. Made from rich unpasteurised cow’s milk, it is floral, fruity, nutty and sharp with a dark rind and slightly grainy paste. Read more
£8.88 £10.45
Norfolk Dapple is a cheddar-style cheese made by Ferndale Cheeses in Norfolk. Maker Arthur Betts uses unpasteurised cow’s milk from a local herd of pedigree Holstein-Friesians and traditional ‘cheddaring’ methods to create this rich and round cheese with a hint of nuttiness. Its namesake dappling develops on the truckles’ cloths while it matures for between five and eight months. Read more
£7.00
Pliable Ogleshield is the West Country equivalent to Swiss Raclette. This supple cheese melts magnificently for sumptuous Alpine style raclette dinners with potatoes and gherkins – or the perfect cheese toastie! Made from rich Jersey milk by Jamie Montgomery in Somerset (maker of Montgomery's Cheddar), it is washed in brine every three days to develop its springy consistency, pink rind and slightly pungent aroma. The name of this cheese honours the contribution of former Neals Yard Dairy maturer Bill Oglethorpe to its development, and the cheese’s shield shape. Read more
£6.55
Love Parmesan? If you’re looking for an authentic PDO regulated Parmigiano Reggiano with a nutty, salty taste and a lingering sweetness, this is it. Granular in texture, this cheese has an inimitably fragrant aroma and is perfect for pasta. Produced in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, it is made from unpasteurised cow’s milk to the same recipe used eight centuries ago. Our golden wedges are cut from carefully matured wheels, which can weigh as much as 39 kg. Read more
£8.75
Raclette de Savoie is the quintessential raclette cheese. Smooth and creamy, it melts evenly without burning for a perfect après ski experience. Traditionally, Raclette was melted in front of an open fire before being scraped over boiled potatoes, pickles and charcuterie. Today, table top raclette grills are more commonly used but the ingredients of an authentic raclette dinner are still the same. Raclette de Savoie can be bought on its own or, for an easy Alpine dinner party, our raclette meal deal contains a selection of alpine charcuterie and a jar of crunchy Slate Pickles too.
Raclette grills are available to hire from either of our Suffolk shops. Read more
£39.00
Ferndale Cheeses’s Norfolk Dapple spends at least twelve hours in a bespoke refrigerator with the smoke of oak wood pellets to become Smoked Dapple. The result is multiple layers of flavour. We love the balance of smokiness, richness, roundness and nuttiness. The ‘dapple’ on this cheese is the beautiful speckling of colours that develop on this clothbound cheese as it matures for between five and eight months. Read more
£7.25
Villa Fumé Smoked Gouda is creamy and slightly spicy with a natural smoke flavour. This award-winning cheese is made on a Dutch farm using thermised cow's milk — an intermediary treatment between raw and pasteurised, which retains natural enzymes and flavours while eliminating some bacteria. The cheeses are then smoked with artisan methods and matured on wooden boards for three to four months. Read more
£7.25
Black Bomber is the flagship cheese of the Snowdonia Cheese Company, one of the UK’s best-selling speciality cheese brands. This multi-award-winning cheese from the Welsh Valleys has become a modern classic, instantly recognisable in its black wax casing. Made with pasteurised cow’s milk, this extra mature Cheddar is creamy and smooth. Its deep yet mellow flavour and long finish has secured its place in many cheese lovers’ hearts. Read more
£5.95
St Helena is a brand new cheese from the makers of St Jude and St Cera. Based at Fen Farm nearby Bungay, Suffolk, they use the raw milk of the farm's Montebeliarde cows to create this supple washed rind cheese made to a St Nectaire recipe and aged on rye straw mats. Milky and sweet with just a hint of tangy farmyard at the finish, St Helena is an excellent melter and we love it alongside the crunchy sharpness of our Slate pickles. Read more
£9.50
Vintage Gouda typically fills your mouth with lingering delights of fudgy caramel and this one from the Cornish Gouda Company is no exception. Aged for over two years, it has a rich, complex flavour and crunchy texture from visible protein crystals. Handcrafted to a traditional Dutch recipe, this Vintage Gouda is made on the Spierings' sustainably-run dairy farm near Looe on the south Cornish coast. It makes an incredible sandwich tucked inside crusty sourdough bread. Read more
£7.75
Vintage Lincolnshire Poacher is made on the Jones family’s sustainably run farm with the unpasteurised milk from their herd of Holstein-Friesian cows. This traditionally-made cheese is similar to cheddar while also being reminiscent of Alpine cheeses such as Comte and Gruyere. Matured for around 22 months on wooden boards, Vintage Lincolnshire Poacher is smooth and rich. Batches made from summer milk have sweet pineapple and grassy notes with hints of toasted nuts. Winter-made batches are often more savoury and meaty. Read more
£7.95
There are no mountains to be found near Copys Green Farm, Wighton, but this doesn't stop Catherine Temple producing Norfolk's very own Alpine-style cheese. Inspired by the local cheeses she discovered on a European cycling holiday, this semi-hard cheese is handmade to a Gruyere recipe using milk from the farm's own herd of Brown Swiss cows. Matured for six to nine months, Wells Alpine has a sweet, nutty flavour and a pleasant tang. Read more
£7.95
Winner of the ‘Best Cheddar’ award at the British Cheese Awards 2018, Westcombe Cheddar is one of the three big Somerset Cheddars. Made by a father and son team at Westcombe Dairy near Shepton Mallett, this PDO accredited artisan Cheddar has a fabulous earthy aroma and a deep complex flavour. We love its lingering notes of notes of hazelnut and caramel; its mellow tang; and famously long finish. Read more
£7.45
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Registered Address: Slate Cheese Limited, 138 High Street, Aldeburgh, Suffolk, IP15 5AQ. Registered Company Number: 10305457. VAT Registration Number: 249907562. Slate is a trading name of Slate Cheese Limited.