It’s raw, it’s cultured, it’s thicker than clotted cream and it’s going to make your puddings, pasta, bakes, sauces and hearts sing! Our super heavy mascarpone is handmade here on our Suffolk farm from the raw cream of our free-ranging Montbeliarde cows. It is buttery, deliciously sharp and full of the delicate and complex flavours of our incredible Suffolk pastures.
Here at Fen Farm, we believe in provenance and care in farming and food production. Over the years, we’ve learnt a few things and we’d like to share them with you. Here are the 8 key elements that we believe make our products the very best:
The quality of cheese and dairy products are influenced by hundreds of vital factors, from a farm’s soil microbiome, to the quality of the cow’s diet, the health and wellbeing of the herd and the skills of the cheesemaker. Here at Fen Farm, we have full control over this cycle, from start to finish. We grow our own forage and grazing right here in the surrounding landscape. We care for every cow in our herd as an individual and we care for our precious milk from the moment it leaves the cow. This level of control helps us to ensure that you receive the highest quality products, every time.
The milk that goes into our products is just as nature intended, raw and unpasteurised. It is a unique expression of the “terroir” of our farm, its delicate ecosystems and the care we put into our herd and pasture. These factors all combine to give our milk an unrivalled depth and complexity of flavour.
The delicate fat and protein molecules in milk can be easily damaged by pumping and transportation and this makes for poor cheese. This is why we gently gravity feed our fresh warm milk straight from the milking parlour to the cheesemaking rooms at each morning’s milking, meaning our cheese retains all the incredible characteristics of our fresh raw milk.
We use the best bugs to make our cheese! A fusion of the unique lactic bacteria native to our farm and the finest French cheesemaking cultures combine to create the complex flavours and aromas in our products.
Our cows live a free-ranging life on our wildlife rich basin marshlands and thrive on a diet of homegrown pasture and forage. We aim to grow all our winter feed ourselves, within a few miles of our farm. We care for our cows’ wellbeing from the inside out, meaning they are healthy, happy and fit. Happy cows live longer, are far less likely to become ill and give the best quality milk. We believe you can taste this care in the complexity and richness of our products.
Milk naturally starts to deteriorate in quality within 24 hours of leaving the cow. This is why our products are made using the freshest warm milk, straight from the cow, very early in the morning, so you get the benefit of eating it as it should be. Incredibly full-flavoured and delicious.
Our girls are of the ancient Montbeliarde breed, originating from the alpine Jura region of France. “Monty” cows have been prized for centuries for their cheesemaking milk, which is used to make some of the world’s finest cheeses, such as Comte, Vacherin Mont D’Or and Reblochon. They don’t give much milk but the milk they do give is protein rich, exquisitely flavoured and ideal for making great cheese and dairy products.
Just this. The subtle care and attention that a pair of human hands can bring to the things we create. No piece of machinery can imitate the gentleness required of a great cheesemaker when navigating the change of seasons. We know that human hands can adapt quicker and that’s why all our products are made right here on our farm, by true artisans, who really care.
