Paxton & Whitfield
93, JERMYN STREET, SW1
ACROSS the road from St James’s Church on Jermyn Street, sandwiched between a shoemaker and an Italian clothier, Paxton & Whitfield sits behind a box hedge at the bottom of a four-storey townhouse. ‘Cheesemonger since 1797’ is emblazoned twice across the windows, above bottles of fortified wines and artisanal knife sets, and a blackboard, smudged with chalk, advertises the Cheese of the Day (Sparkenhoe Shropshire Blue at the time of writing). Inside, beneath enamel pendant lights, cases lined with rye straw are organised by type and territory, beginning with the British blues and finishing with hard, imported rounds from the Continent.
In the run-up to the holidays, customers nose through the black and gilt shopfront and comb the displays for ‘Stilton, alpine cheeses, and Vacherin Mont d’or,’ says Alex Lambert, the assistant manager. A back-pocket suggestion of Mr Lambert’s, however, is Old Groendal from Belgium, an eye-poppingly-rich, Gouda-style cheese with notes of salted caramel. It’s at its peak with a glass of tawny Port. Annie Meakin, the London manager, has been guiding people to Schnebelhorn, an alpine cheese with added cream that can act like a Cheddar on a cheeseboard, and to a long-time favourite blue, Stichelton, made in Nottinghamshire using the same method as Stilton, but with unpasteurised milk. It’s a toasty, buttery cheese—fresher and more variable than the original. Anything else we can’t miss? ‘One standout chutney,’ says Mrs Meakin. ‘The No 93 Ale is a classic, but the Spiced Apricot and Cranberry is wonderful for Christmas.’ Jo Rodgers