Local cheese brings smiles to Chelsea Pensioners (From Western Telegraph)

Local cheese brings smiles to Chelsea Pensioners

Llanboidy Cheesemakers were delighted to have their award-winning Llanboidy Cheese selected by the Dairy Council to be donated to the Chelsea Pensioners recently.

The tradition of presenting the men with the very best of British Cheeses dates back to 1692 when a London cheesemonger gave the Chelsea Pensioners cheese for Christmas.

In the late 1970s, The Dairy Council began hosting this special event. Certainly, Llanboidy Cheese fits the bill as it recently won a gold medal at the British Cheese Awards.

In keeping with tradition, the Dairy Council donated 250lbs of English, Welsh and Scottish Cheese at their annual ceremony held recently at The Royal Hospital in Chelsea, and, after careful sampling, included Llanboidy Cheese in their selection.

Michele Stephens, communications manager to the Dairy Council, said: Each year we try to pick cheeses from all over the country and, as there are more than 400 varieties to choose from, it can be a difficult job, but I can tell you that the pensioners were very pleased with their Llanboidy Cheese.

Sue Jones, owner of Llanboidy Cheesemakers, said: I felt very privileged that our cheese was chosen for this traditional ceremony for these grand old gentlemen. I can well understand their enjoyment of our Llanboidy Cheese which is often described as having a robust flavour.

Caption: Chelsea Pensioners enjoying Llanboidy cheese.