Basingstoke Cheese Shop champions British varieties

As Covid struck in 2020, Justine and Barry Walker were at a farmers market selling their own award-winning charcuterie, when neighbours asked if they could provide food boxes of good quality local produce.

This soon became a Covid delivery business, morphing into the Deli, Coffee Shop, and then Cheese Shop, at Wolverton Park, south of Baughurst, just off the A339.

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Owner Barry Walker, and Molly Smith (Image: Barry Walker)

The business blossomed, and now the Cheese Shop boasts the best selection of British cheeses in Hampshire, with over 65 varieties in stock.

Barry searches for and procures new varieties each week, keeping the stock fresh. 

Barry, 68, said: “During Covid, customers asked us to order their favourite continental cheeses, and then we had an epiphany -  we probably make some of these types of cheeses in the UK and we do, and then some.

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"The artisan cheese scene is booming in the UK, and there is no shortage of variations of British cheeses. We produce about 1,200 different types of cheese, and with multiples of some of those varieties, the figure is probably closer to 1,500, with UK cheese makers making more varieties than the French.

"In fact, I think Britain now makes, without a doubt, the best cheeses in the world.”

The business has always focused on sourcing and stocking the best British, local and seasonal produce.

Apart from the Cheese Shop, the deli makes its own award-winning pies, sausage rolls, quiches, charcuterie, and homecooked hams, which then go on the menu in the coffee shop.

The deli, farm shop and coffee shop is located at Wolverton Park, Ramsdell Road, Wolverton, and is open Thursdays and Fridays from 9am till 4pm, and Saturdays from 9am until 3pm.

More information can be found online at hampshire-deli.co.uk or on Facebook at hampshiredeli.