The Cheesehouse

Knockanore Farmhouse Cheese was established in 1987 to produce a range of speciality cheeses made from Unpasteurised milk. Fresh Creamy milk from our own top quality PEDIGREE FRIESAN HERD grazing in the green pastures of the Knockanore Valley.  

Like the farm, quality is the keynote in the cheese plant and the art of cheesemaking has been perfected by the dedicated staff some of whom have been with us since its inception. We operate a comprehensive HACCP system.

Each staff member is fully trained under the guidelines set out by the FSAI. Comprehensive microbiological testing is carried out continuously by an INAB accredited laboratory off site thus ensuring that all cheeses leave our plant at optimum quality and safety. 

STAGE ONE

Our milking parlour is equipped with the latest technology to ensure first class standards in all aspects of hygiene. We have a direct link from our parlour pumping fresh milk to our production unit.

STAGE TWO

When the milk is warm, the cheese maker adds a bacterial culture (dry flakes of Lactococcus Lactis dissolved in a bowl of milk) to start the fermentation process. The culture also helps the cheese's flavour develop as the cheese ages.

STAGE THREE & FOUR

After heating the milk for another hour, we add starter & rennet with a fifteen minute gap between adding at 32%.This enzyme thickens or coagulates the milk. The milk will turn to a firm texture-like consistency within about 25 minutes.

The coagulated milk  is cut into half-inch cubes with wire knives. In the process, 90% of it separates out as watery whey. Solid curds remain, and this is essentially cheese, though soft and tasteless. To firm up the curds, they are stirred and cooked in the whey for one hour.

STAGE FIVE & SIX

The curds & whey are drained from the cheese vat to the draining table. The whey is then extruded to our underground tank for later use as fertilizer on our fields. Meanwhile, the curds are gently raked to side of draining table.

When the cheese maker determines that the acidity level is correct, milling of the firm slabs into “fingers” takes place.

The packs are cut into slabs and the slabs are then stacked and re-stacked to give the bacterial culture time to multiply and to control the moisture in the cheese. The cheese curds are poured into special moulds to form a 2½ Kg cheese wheel.

STAGE SEVEN

Knockanore Cheese is vacuum packed and stored for a minimum of six months. However our plain red is matured for a further six months to give it a distinctive flavour.

All our cheese is stored in full wheels, half wheels,  200gram wedges or as required by our customers