A few years ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Jonny and Dulcie Crickmore as part of a CheeseJourney's trip I was on in England. They introduced me to their gooey, nutty and beautifully mushroomy raw milk brie style cheese. This is a stand out in England as it's one of only a handful of its type in the world to be made by the farmer on the farm (farmstead cheese). This was also voted best cheese in the UK 2022/23. It's made from the milk of red and white Montbeliard cows that graze on their lush marshes. Johnny is a 3rd generation farmer on his family land, at Fen Farm Dairy, in Bungay, Suffolk, England. The name of the cheese refers to Roger Bigod who was one of the Barons of Normandy, who arrived from France with William the Conqueror in 1066. Bigod was also a direct descendant of the Emperor Charlemagne, who is reputed to have “discovered” Brie cheese.

Jonny even painted his own cheese, beautifully, as he joined my cheese portrait painting class that I taught as part of the Cheese Journey's UK Tour. I was kind of jealous though, because I was instantly in love with this indulgent Brie-de-Meaux style cheese but sad I wouldn't get to paint it myself.... that is until last year when I saw him again, and he blew my mind by offering me a taste of his new Pasteurized bigod! Now it's in the USA and I was so excited to see if I could paint it as well as Johnny. I'm satisfied I may have come somewhat close.

The challenge was of course a race against time and very warm June temperature in my studio. By the time I was finished for the day, my model had completely passed out, flat. Not to worry though; I spooned that all up!

Country of Origin: UK, England

Availability: sold