The Book & Bucket Cheese Company announce new cheese for Cunard’s newest ship

The Book & Bucket Cheese Company in Cranborne was founded by Peter Morgan. When Peter first began making cheese, he sought the advice of cheesemakers with over 120 years experience between them. The advice he was given was as follows –

“Buy some books and read as much as possible. After that it is just bucket science – keep playing until you make something you like!”

In January 2019, with a bucket full of recipes, ideas, and the help of his friends, Peter launched the Book and Bucket Cheese Company.

Five years later on, the company have recently announced that they have been working with the development chefs of luxury cruise brand Cunard to create not one, but two new delicious bespoke cheeses for the new Queen Anne cruise ship.

The cheeses have been a labour of love for Peter and his team, and after working closely with the inspiring team of Chefs at Cunard, the first of the cheeses has been announced.

Stowaway is a beautiful sheep milk cheese, made using a special modern blend of cultures to create a
unique flavour profile especially to honour the new, modern Queen Anne cruise ship. The development team thought it was important to reference Cunard’s long history at sea, so a traditional cheddar making process was used to create this premium cheese. Stowaway is finished using Blackthorn salt which is made in Scotland using centuries old, sustainable production methods, and is finally aged in the Book & Bucket cheese cellars.

The cheese’s local Dorset providence produces a unique terroir that only Cranborne Chase can provide, resulting in a natural rind that changes throughout the seasons.

The combination of new cultures, a natural rind and traditional cheesemaking methods fits
perfectly with the stunning new Queen Anne cruise ship, who begins her inaugural voyage on 3rd
May 2024.

Stowaway will be available on the ship for its maiden voyage along with two others from The Book & Bucket Cheese Company range, the Cranborne Blue and Smoked Blyton cheese. A second bespoke cheese is also being created to add to the collection later in the year.

Peter’s extensive knowledge of milk types, how to perfectly age a cheese, and using the right salt to enhance and change a flavour profile, result in distinctive traditional cheddar notes and modern flavour twists from the cultures. These nuances of skills combined with flavours work together to create exactly the type of cheese that the Book & Bucket Cheese Company have been recognised for.

Peter commented: “As Stowaway is loaded onto the Queen Anne for her maiden voyage, we are
thrilled to be working so closely with Cunard and excited to see where our partnership will go as
we look toward our future with them.”