Chris Rundle meets the Gloucestershire farmer who has branched out into brie

You could say cheese-making runs in the Weaver family. But Simon Weaver would be the first to assure you that things have progressed quite a bit since the days when his grandfather's cousin – known as Uncle Ted – was known for maturing the cheese he made on top of his cider barrels.

In fact, if Simon is known for anything himself, it's for the creation of a unique range of local, Cotswold cheeses which are now selling to a growing and highly enthusiastic audience.

But when he and his wife Carol decided to embark on the enterprise, using the organic milk from their own cows, they weren't content, as many newcomers to the artisan cheese market have been, simply to turn out a standard product, pretty much indistinguishable from a host of others.

It took more than 12 months of patient research and discovery about different methods of cheese production. In order to become fully au fait with the ins and outs of the business, the pair travelled throughout Europe to explore its cheese making heritage. Carol later returned without Simon to spend more time learning about different methods, equipping herself for her new role overseeing daily production at Kirkham Farm.

The Weavers' decision to make brie was driven by taste and their love of soft cheese. The brie culture has been used successfully in this country for several years, notably in Somerset, where locally made bries have outperformed their French counterparts in a number of trade competitions.

But even then a lot of experimentation with and research into different moulds and cultures from Europe was needed before they were happy with the cheese.

Not that the decision to start turning Kirkham Farm's milk into cheese was driven by whim alone.

"The whole idea was to stop being a basic commodity supplier and to get closer to our customers, and that's what we have done," said Simon.

"But at that time, nearly four years ago, we had just converted to organic milk production and then the market for organic milk suddenly went flat and we couldn't sell it.

"We stuck it for six months and then told ourselves we either had to stop being organic or build on what we had got. And as we were quite interested in doing something with cheese, that's what we decided on.

"Twelve months later, of course, the boot was on the other foot and the demand for organic milk went through the roof – and has stayed much that way since."

The Weavers – the family has been farming since at least 1570, originally in Somerset – only use a third of the milk the 180 Friesians produce on their farm near Lower Slaughter, with the bulk still sold to OMSCo, the Organic Milk Suppliers' Co-operative, main suppliers to yogurt maker Yeo Valley.

But the milk itself is particularly suited to the cheeses for which they have already become renowned. The cows are artificially inseminated from New Zealand bulls to produce a more traditional animal that is smaller, darker and hardier than those bred for high-volume milk production. The emphasis is on producing healthy, robust animals rather than optimising milk yields.

The first Organic Cotswold Brie went on sale at Cotswold farmers' markets in 2005, and has since been joined by blue-veined and herbed variants. Sales have gradually expanded into independent specialist shops and through a contract with Sainsbury's.

Most customers take to the Weavers' products immediately, appreciating the subtle differences in flavour which emerge with the turning year. Each batch is made from a single day's milk production – still a rare procedure – but climate and the time of the year add their own influences as well.

Now cheese production has taken its place as a primary contributor to the finances of Kirkham Farm, where Simon also raises beef and lamb and grows arable crops. He and Carol see converting to organic production as a process which returned the farm to its original, natural state, the land being made up of low-lying meadows still referred to by names such as Black Nell, the Hangings, Kingcups and the Church Field, intersected by watercourses, and much of it would never have been intensively farmed.

The rest of the grassland has been improved with nitrogen-rich clover, sown to create ideal grazing conditions. Almost four years down the line, the cheese business not only ensures there is always work for herdsman Richard Simms and his wife Marion, but has created work for six people.

"We do a lot of farmers' markets, but I share them around between everyone who works here, so that we all get to meet the customers, talk to them, and pick up on any feedback," says Simon.

Cotswold Organic Brie has already been making a name for itself, taking a clutch at this year's Three Counties Show and laying claim to gold at the World Cheese Awards last year. Although that hasn't prevented the Weavers feeling something of a chill as the money supply has tightened in recent weeks.

"People are weighing up their farmers' market purchases a lot more," says Simon.

"You can see it at the markets. They will still head for the bread or the meat stalls because they have to have both of those, but cheese is one of those products which is really an optional purchase, and sometimes our sales are a bit disappointing. But the business is growing, all the same.

"Because of what we make and the way we make it we have to charge a premium, we have no choice. We cannot compete with industrial producers.

"On the other hand, if you pay a little extra for a premium product, then you tend to treat it differently, and there's rarely any waste.

"Yes, it's nice to get awards and prizes and to get a bit of attention that way, but at the end of the day, we are like so many smaller, specialist producers – the only prize really worth having is a sale."