Harrogate Blue

Producer: Shepherds Purse

Location: Thirsk, Yorkshire

Style: Blue

Milk Type: Cow

Milk Treatment: Pasteurised

Tasting Notes: Rich, Bold, Creamy, Peppery Finish

Vegetarian: Yes

Harrogate Blue is a rich, creamy cow’s milk blue cheese made by Shepherds Purse near Thirsk in North Yorkshire.

Launched in 2012, it has gone on to win numerous national and international awards and is one of the more distinctive cheeses in the Shepherds Purse range.

What does Harrogate Blue taste like?

Rich, creamy and considerably bolder than Yorkshire Blue, with a savoury blue flavour and a distinctive peppery finish.

Its warm orange colour also makes it particularly striking on a cheeseboard.

Who would enjoy Harrogate Blue?

Choose Harrogate Blue if you like your blue cheese with a bit more character but don’t necessarily want the saltiness or intensity of a traditional Stilton.

It sits nicely between a gentle creamy blue and a full-on traditional blue.

How to serve Harrogate Blue

Allow it to come to room temperature before eating.

Serve with crackers or good bread and something sweet such as pear, fig or a fruit chutney. It also works brilliantly crumbled through salads or melted into sauces.

Stephen’s Take

“People sometimes assume Harrogate Blue and Yorkshire Blue are basically the same cheese. They really aren’t.

Harrogate Blue has much more punch and that lovely peppery finish. If Yorkshire Blue is the introduction, Harrogate Blue is where I’d send you next.”

— Stephen, Founder of George & Joseph Cheesemongers