Academy of Cheese Level 1: Associate (Virtual) Monday 24th & 31st March 2025

Do you like cheese but want to know more about where it comes from, how it’s made, how to look after it, and how to put together amazing cheeseboards?

This is where you get to learn more.  Our course takes place over two Zoom webinars on consecutive Monday evenings between 8:00pm and 9:30pm with Stephen Fleming, the owner of George & Joseph. 

Stephen brings a wealth of cheese knowledge and an unrivalled passion for cheese following over ten years of working in the cheese industry first with his local market stall, then setting up the bricks & mortar shop in Chapel Allerton in 2013.

Here's what he has to say about the course:

"When I started my cheesemongers business over a decade ago I knew very little about cheese myself - my previous career was in IT - but I knew that I loved it and I wanted to learn more.  I visited cheese makers, other cheesemongers, and read lots about cheese.  I gradually built up a lot of knowledge as time went on.

I love sharing my knowledge with my customers, so when the Academy of Cheese was created, I decided to become one of their certified trainers."

The Level One (Associate) course is aimed at anyone who enjoys cheese - there are no prerequisites to taking part.  It’s lots of fun, and there’s lots of cheese to try.  

Over the course of two weeks, Stephen will share lots of his knowledge with you about:

• The history of cheese, and what the future holds
• The different styles and types of cheese, how they are made and sold
• How to taste and appreciate different cheeses
• How to put together an amazing cheeseboard to impress your friends and family, as well as tips on pairing drinks with cheese

We’ll taste through 12 different cheeses (6 per week) - so you’ll get lots of practice in identifying what makes a cheese great.  

The course takes place on Zoom over two consecutive weeks.  You’ll receive a delivery of cheeses before each training session.

At the end of the course you get to take a 30-minute, multiple choice online exam.  When you pass you’ll get a certificate and a highly coveted pin badge to show off your cheese expertise!

If you want to take your cheese education further you can continue to study Level Two, and Levels Three and Four are in the pipeline to help you become a Master of Cheese!

Important information

Course materials - you can receive a printed course pack, or PDF versions to print out yourself.  

Cheeses - with the Cheese Included option you will receive two deliveries of cheeses to taste.  If you want to source your own cheese to taste, then just choose "Course Only" and we'll let you know which cheeses to buy.