Killeen Goat Mature named Best Irish Cheese at British & Irish Cheese Awards 2025

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Killeen Goat Mature named Best Irish Cheese at British & Irish Cheese Awards 2025

Killeen Goat Mature named Best Irish Cheese at British & Irish Cheese Awards 2025

 

Killeen Goat Mature, a 5-month aged gouda-style cheese, has been named Best Irish Cheese at the British & Irish Cheese Awards 2025. Produced by farmer and cheesemaker, Marion Roeleveld at Killeen Farmhouse Cheese in County Galway, Killeen Goat Mature took this coveted prize among hundreds of entries into the 29th edition of these Awards, which were hosted by the Bath & West Food & Drink Festival near Shepton Mallet in Somerset.

Made using milk from the farm’s own 200-strong herd of goats, Killeen Goat Mature is beige in colour, and has a slightly earthy and nutty flavour profile, with a hint of goat. While most of the farm’s cheeses are aged for 6-8 weeks, the winning goat’s cheese is matured for 5 months, exclusively for Dunnes Stores, as part of the retailer’s Simply Better range.

Marion Roeleveld from Killeen Farmhouse Cheese commented: “I am thrilled to have won the Best Irish Cheese - it is such recognition that the quality of Killeen is still up there, even though the competition is getting better and better each year, and we have such an impressive range of great Irish cheeses.”

All special trophy winners were announced during the British & Irish Cheese Awards Dinner on the evening of Friday 21 March, and the Supreme Champion Cup was presented to Burford, a washed rind, Alpine-style cheese from King Stone Dairy in Gloucestershire.

The Best English Cheese trophy was awarded to Clara from Harvey & Brockless, a log-shaped goat’s cheese sprinkled in a layer of ash; the Best Scottish Cheese trophy went to Anster, a delicate, pale and crumbly cheese from St Andrews Farmhouse Cheese Company; and Caws Teifi Cheese took the Best Welsh Cheese trophy with Saval, a Caerphilly-based washed rind cheese.

Organised by The Royal Bath & West Society, the British & Irish Cheese Awards 2025 assessed nearly 600 entries on Friday 21 March, with the help of 52 judges from across the industry. The expert panel, made up of cheesemakers, cheesemongers, cheese experts, buyers and commentators, judged entries in their individual classes during the morning session, awarding Bronze, Silver and Gold accolades. During the second round, all Gold award winners from each category were judged alongside one another to identify the category winners, before all category winners were judged in the final round to find this year’s Supreme Champion and Reserve Champion.

Hosted by the Bath & West Food & Drink Festival, the British & Irish Cheese Awards judging hall was open to the public over the weekend of 22 to 23 March. Festival visitors were invited to witness the incredible scale of the judging arena, cast their votes in the People’s Choice Award, and even join the festival’s brand new Guided Cheese Tours.