Red Leicester

Belton Farm is west of Leicestershire via Staffordhsire in Shropshire. An independent family-run business, cheese has been made there by the Beckett family since 1922.

Red Leicester (also known simply as Leicester or Leicestershire) is an English cheese similar to Cheddar but crumbly in texture. It is typically aged 6-12 months. The rind is reddish-orange with a powdery mould on it. Since the eighteenth century, it has been coloured by adding annatto extract during manufacture. It is made with cow's milk and is named after the Midlands city of Leicester or the county it is in.

Traditionally made wheels are fairly firm and dry, with a friable texture and a slightly sweet, mellow flavour that becomes stronger as the cheese matures. Block-made cheeses are moister and have a slightly sweet aftertaste and a creamy texture. The cheese has a slightly nutty taste. Versions sold in supermarkets are typically coloured with annatto, though it is possible to obtain Red Leicester without it.

It is aged anywhere from four-nine months. "Young" Leicesters, at the beginning of that range, will be very mild; it is usually after six months that a Leicester begins to develop enough of a tang to be classified as "old". The modern industrial method for aging is the Vac pac method. Smaller "farmhouse" makers usually still use the traditional way of maturing it in cloth, for a better flavour development.

Originally made on farms in Leicestershire with surplus milk, once all the Stilton desired was made, it was originally coloured with carrot or beetroot juice.

It used to be called Leicestershire Cheese but came to be called Red Leicester to distinguish it from "White Leicester," which was made to a national wartime recipe in the 1940s due to rationing. When fresh, the fat content of Red Leicester is generally 33 or 34%. Regulations require minimum fat levels be stated in terms of the "fat in dry matter" or FDM. This is because moisture levels decrease as cheese ages. FDM measures the amount of fat present in the solids, which includes protein, minerals, vitamins and salt. The minimum FDM listed for Red Leicester is generally 48%.