UK cheese maker Ilchester Cheese Co has relaunched its first ever product to celebrate its 40th anniversary.


Original Ilchester Beer Cheese was launched in 1962, when its alcohol content stirred a hefty protest among teetotallers, with ten million consumers boycotting the product. This was despite the fact that one would have had to eat over 20 pounds of the cheese in order to consume the equivalent of one pint of beer, said Ilchester’s commercial director Melvin Glynn.


The product was developed when Ilchester founder Ken Seaton discovered the combination while trying to keep Cheddar truckles fresh on the bar in his hotel in Somerset. It became so popular that he soon expanded and started the Ilchester Cheese Co, producing Beer Cheese to his secret recipe.


The first blended cheese to be produced in the UK, Ilchester Beer Cheese has been produced ever since. However, the company decided to relaunch it this year, “reformulated to appeal to the modern palate” a representative said. It is now available in a 3kg deli wheel or a 175g tray pack, while a 150g flow wrapped pack will be available from June.


Beer Cheese is just one of more than 50 Ilchester blended specialty cheeses with ingredients such as Mexican spices, whisky and sundried tomatoes.

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In the UK it will be listed in most major multiples, including Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Asda and Morrisons. It is also exported to the USA, Germany, Holland, Denmark, Sweden, Australia, Cyprus, Hong Kong and South Africa.