When Somerset Invaded Ayrshire: A Story of Scottish Cheese, 1790–1890

Abstract

There are certain commodities that are part of the taken-for-granted background of Scottishness. Cheese is one of them. Dunlop, in particular, has been around since the eighteenth century but, despite its iconic status, its biography has yet to be fully explored. This paper is a preliminary probe, suggesting that Dunlop and its main rival, Scottish Cheddar, were locked in a struggle for pride of place in the national palate. The story is a complex one of knowledge transfer of cheesemaking techniques from Somerset in South-West England coupled with innovation and popularisation by Scottish cheesemakers. One comparative measure of value and quality referred to is price, as derived from newspapers such as the Caledonian Mercury. This shows that traditional Dunlop was less valued than Cheddar in the Scottish market. Lesser demand, lower price, and lower esteem all then contributed to a rethink about the Dunlop system of cheesemaking. From the 1850s onwards Dunlop was increasingly made using elements of the Cheddar recipe and techniques, and by 1890 the two cheeses were indistinguishable in taste and texture. Overall, the paper reassesses a number of actors and events that between them transformed Scottish cheese in the period 1790 to 1890.