Made in London: Wildes Cheese in Tottenham

Urban cheesemaker Philip Wilton tells Victoria Stewart about early mishaps, being part of the community and why it has to be London
Job satisfaction: Philip Wilton started Wildes Cheese three years ago
Victoria Stewart17 February 2017

Philip Wilton is the founder of Wildes Cheese, a business he set up three and a half years ago. Born in Cyprus, he has lived in London since he was 16 years old, and has spent a large proportion of his life based in Tottenham with his partner and business partner Keith. Having been made redundant from his job as a management consultant, he started persuading friends and family to eat his cheese until, in June 2012, he took a lease on a tiny space to expand his business. In March this year, “when the cheese was almost busting out,” he and his business partner Keith moved to a larger premises. Here he tells us about the process of running a London cheese business.

How many cheeses do you make?

We have about 30, but only 10 at any one time. Because we are not manufacturers of cheese; we make it because we love it. But we love the creativity and the experimentation of it. So once a month we just make a special called Brian. If people like it enough we might make it again. And every month there’s a different Brian. Best sellers at the moment are Ellis, Alexandra, Howard and Londonshire.

Why did you start the business? Did you always want to work in the cheese industry?

People always say: ‘If you’re going to set up your own business, do it with something you love.’ Well I love eating. So clearly food was going to be where it was at. I’ve always been a great lover of cheese and the mystery of the alchemy of cheese making, and the only thing that stopped me to start with was that I hadn’t realised you could do that in London. We’d started looking in Wales, but it had never occurred to us to actually start here. But you can do bread, beer, anything here. Then the penny dropped…

Bestseller: the Alexandra cheese

When did you first make cheese?

In my kitchen. Oh, it was hideous! It was called Burt. It just didn’t mature well. And then I went off and did a course, and then I did a year at an agricultural college doing short weekend modules – that was while I was still working.

How much cheese have you sold in total?

It’s hard to say, but we make between 250kg and 300kg a week, which is 2,500 litres of milk. And that started at 10kg three years ago. That’s why I had to move out of home! It’s mad!

What has the reaction been like?

Well, we have regular customers. We have occasionally had people say they didn’t really like it, sometimes with the specials, and some have described The Ellis as weird while others love it. The thing I’ve found over the years is that no palate is the same. People like different stuff. The only feedback you can trust is whether people spend their money – and they spend their money.

Wildes Cheese - in pictures

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Where does the milk come from?

It all comes from a single herd 55 miles outside London; if they’re out eating grass, their life will have a better quality than if they’re inside eating hay. I chose it because it was the nearest to London, and they farm it all to organic standards, and they don’t do anything to the milk at all except pasteurize it to the legal minimum. That way the structure of the milk is not destroyed.

How important to you was it to produce something in London?

It was fundamentally important. We’re here in Tottenham and it was important that we were part of Tottenham, we don’t just happen to be here. We do a lot of voluntary work, and because we live here (we’re ten minutes’ walk away) this is our community. It’s a business that has ethics and values around its community. Where else would you want to live apart form London?!

Do you incorporate any London-made ingredients?

One of our cheeses called St Bruce is washed in Redemption beer, which is a brewery just across the road. We also have a guy called John the Poacher and he brings us foraged fruits and herbs. And also Hazel finds a lot of surplus fruit – like rhubarb – and turns it into a membrillo for us.

A mix of Wildes cheeses

What’s it like running a business in London?

I don’t think the red tape is any worse in London than anywhere else. The problem with London is the expense. Everything costs a lot of money. Transport’s a problem. But on the other side of that you’ve got a population who are willing to try something different. And I think the London community is leading the way, and the rest of the country, in terms of provenance of food and locally produced food.

Do you still eat cheese on a regular basis?

Yes. We’ll just eat a sample. You have to have a healthy relationship with your own product. It’s like someone who brews beer – you can’t start drinking at 6 in the morning because it’s going to end very, very badly…!

Can you describe the life of a London cheese maker?

I say: when our eyes open we start work, and when they close we stop. The milk comes in at 4am and it goes into these vats, which is basically a very expensive, shiny bain-marie. It warms inside at anything between 30 and 50 degrees. And we do all this listening to disco! It drains overnight, it then matures before coming into our first cheese fridge, Cave 1 (we are planning to expand this) and we also have Cave 2, which is more cave-like so it’s more humid and slightly colder. This produces a softer, gooier cheese. The other one is for drier, harder cheese. It’s there no less than six weeks but probably no more than six months. We also have a packing room and a fridge where we keep certain cheese. Then it all leaves through another door.

Do you still have time to eat and drink for pleasure?

Yes we do – mostly locally. Recently we made a conscious decision to have a bit more of a work life balance. We could be persuaded to do anything work related on a Monday night; now we say no. Three and a half years in, we are starting to discover that there is life the other side of that door!

Which other London producers you admire?

I really admire Redemption Brewing, primarily because when I first started thinking about the business I went and saw Andy there and he and his partner Sam were so generous with their time. They talked me through their business and how it worked. And they make a really good product. It wasn’t until I had my own business that I realised the most precious thing you’ve got is time. Over the years we’ve worked together a lot.

Visit Wildescheese.co.uk for details of the new cheese making courses run by Philip and Keith. Buy their cheese from delis or stalls at Borough and Alexandra Palace markets.

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