It is always great to visit local success stories and I did so last week at the Old Brickworks in Rudgwick the home, among others, of Charmer Cheese and the Firebird Brewery. Charmer is a brilliant name for a terrific product. The cheese is locally sourced with all the milk coming from Rudgwick cows. It was the brainchild of Tim Harrison the third generation to farm locally (at the neighbouring Woodsomes Farm) and cheesemaker Rob Bookham who was already producing Twineham Grange vegetarian cheese. It goes from strength to strength. Whereas the brick-manufacturing which preceded it on the site was “cyclical” with the amount of bricks being made going up and down with the number of houses built, demand for high quality food products has been consistently on the up. The UK is self-sufficient in 60 per cent of all our food. With ever improving quality and an emphasis on food provenence, local brands with national appeal – such as Charmer Cheese - have huge potential to grow in the years ahead.
The site boasts a café with (predictably) delicious cheese on toast and a shop selling their produce. The shop also markets the beer of next door neighbour Firebird Brewery. Run by Bill King (a name with huge resonance in Horsham brewing) and Richard Peters. The sheer variety of beers produced is astonishing from traditional bitters to Bohemian Lager and American Pale Ale. The brewery is a popular destination for visitors wishing to learn about brewing and sample the product.
This hive of commercial activity is all the more welcome given that it followed the sad demise of the previous employer on the site.
The Rudgwick Brickworks had a long and successful history dating back to before the Great War. Its site produced not only thousands of bricks but no fewer than three renowned fossils including Rudgwick's own “Polacanthus Rudgwickensis”. However the brickworks came to an end in the last recession, with the jobs it supported coming to an end.
It is hugely satisfactory that the site was preserved for commercial use and now boasts a number of thriving small businesses now with more employees than were sustained by the brickworks.
Photo caption: Meeting Rob Bookham and Tim Harrison at Charmer Cheese, Rudgwick