If you want to sniff out a tasty treat, Cheese Fiend might have the answer, says Sarah Phillips

THEY say that age doesn’t matter unless you are a cheese. Like most women, Anne Hurwood might not agree, but after years in the making it’s safe to say that her dream has finally matured.

Amongst the quintessentially English antique shops which line The Bank, in Barnard Castle, one shopkeeper is introducing a taste of the Mediterranean to the historic market town.

After almost 30 years in the nursing profession, Anne decided to brave the chilly economic climate and set up the shop of her dreams with her partner, Dave Austin. Cheese Fiend celebrates both local produce and muchloved classics from across the Channel.

With changes taking place at work, and the encouragement of her very supportive partner, it seemed like the perfect time for Anne to take the plunge and pursue her dream of opening a shop.

As she was a first-time shop owner help was at hand from Barnard Castle Vision, who provided funding for the decorating of the shop, and Love Food, who funded the fridges and offered invaluable business advice. The shop finally opened in April.

“It has just been something that I’ve wanted to do for years and years,” says Anne. “So do you wait until the climate is right or take a gamble, which is what we have done.”

The dream was inspired by visiting cheese shops while holidaying abroad. Stepping into Cheese Fiend you are certainly filled with the nostalgia of continental summer holidays gone by.

The shop walls are lined with racks of fine wines and chorizo sausage hangs behind the deli counter. Also available are loose olives and anti-pasti, as well as a variety of locallysourced chutneys and crackers to perfectly complement the wide choice of cheeses.

While many of the products are sourced from local farmers and cheese makers, Anne has been known to stock some more exotic cheeses from further afield. The most unusual one was the Norwegian Geitost, a goats’ cheese that looks like fudge but tastes like peanut butter and caramel chocolate. “It is the Marmite of the cheese world. You either hate it or you love it,” says Anne.

For a gift with a difference, Anne takes orders for hampers which can be tailor-made to include a variety of cheeses and other products from the shop, such as the popular Spicy Monkey range of chutneys and dips. There will also be some specialist cheeses coming in for the festive season, such as goats’ cheese wrapped in vine leaves.

Anne is now planning to expand and hopes to introduce tables and chairs so that clients can have light snacks from the deli. Plans for wine tasting and cheese evenings are also on the table.

Author Avery Aames once declared: “Life is great. Cheese makes it better.” This is certainly true for Anne, who now enjoys being known as the Cheese Lady from Barnard Castle.

  • Cheese Fiend, The Bank, Barnard Castle.

Anne’s top three cheeses

  • 1. Stinking Bishop: a smooth, creamy and very smelly cheese.
  • 2. Ribblesdale Blue: a tangy but sweet Yorkshire goat cheese.
  • 3. Morbier: a semi-soft French cheese with a unique layer of ash in the middle.