Leitrim Hill Creamery scoops top award at Irish Cheese Awards
Leitrim Hill Creamery, scooped the top award at the 2026 Irish Cheese Awards
Co. Leitrim Farmhouse Cheesemaker, Leitrim Hill Creamery, scooped the top award at the 2026 Irish Cheese Awards during a prestigious ceremony hosted by , the Association of Irish Farmhouse Cheesemakers, at Cloughjordan House in Co. Tipperary last week. It was a day to savour for the Drumcong based cheesemaker, who was taking part in the awards for only the second time, as it was named ‘Supreme Champion’.
The biennial celebration of Ireland’s farmhouse cheesemakers, now in its eleventh year, named winners across 14 distinct classes with awards also presented to the ‘Best New Cheese’ and ‘Best Raw Milk Cheese’, culminating in naming one winner as this year’s ‘Supreme Champion’. This followed a rigorous judging process that was undertaken by a high calibre panel of Irish and international cheese experts at La Rousse Foods in Dublin earlier this month.
Together, the 15 judges tasted 150 different cheeses produced by thirty cheesemakers located across the island of Ireland. Each cheese was individually scored on aroma, flavour, body, texture, and overall appearance in order to select this year’s worthy winners.
Leitrim Hill Creamery's flagship fresh raw milk goat cheese, ‘Cnoc Liatroma’, scooped the top award, being named overall ‘Supreme Champion’ and presented with the newly named Veronica Steele Perpetual Cup in memory of the life and legacy of the pioneering Milleens cheesemaker.
‘Cnoc Liatroma’ is made using raw goat’s milk from the cheesemaker’s own herd and local partner farms, using a traditional continuous whey starter method that develops natural acidity and complexity.
The curds are carefully hand-ladled into moulds to preserve a soft, creamy, pillowy texture, then turned and salted for two days to develop a delicate geotrichum rind and its signature tangy character with citrus earthy notes throughout, before being wrapped and ready to be eaten.
Leitrim Hill Creamery is a thriving goat enterprise managed by Lisa Gifford along with her daughter, Gypsy Gifford, and her wife, Richelle South, on their smallholding in Drumcong, Co. Leitrim.
Aged 84, chief farmer and matriarch, Lisa - who grew up in the U.S. - decided to move from Serbia (where she was living and had learnt how to make goat’s cheese) to Leitrim in December 2016 to fulfil a lifelong dream of coming back to her grandparents' home county.
By January 2017 she had acquired some goats and a herd number, and began making cheese for herself and her neighbours as she felt it was a great way to connect with her community and keep herself busy.
Her daughter, Gypsy, previously Corporate Chef of Disney Studios and Assistant Professor at The Culinary Institute of America, had always had a passion for working with farmers and using artisan products to create real food that nourishes the soul.
She and her wife, Richelle - the lynchpin of operations - who previously worked as Commercial Director of a craft spirits distribution company, Proof & Co, in Singapore, loved Lisa’s goat’s cheese so much that they decided to join her in Ireland in 2021 and built out a cheesemaking facility at Leitrim Hill in an old hay barn.
The trio have subsequently expanded their business with their own retail outlet, The Hidden Corner Cheese Shop, which opened its doors in Carrick-On-Shannon in December 2023.
Leitrim Hill Creamery’s award-winning cheeses are available to purchase online from www.leitrimhillcreamery.com, from The Hidden Corner Cheese Shop in Carrick-On-Shannon, and from other leading retailers and independent food stores throughout the island of Ireland.
Gypsy spoke of her excitement at being named this year’s Supreme Champion.
“We’re utterly shocked and completely honoured to be recognised amongst the leaders and pioneers of this industry, who have led the way for Irish farmhouse cheesemaking over the last 50 years. We certainly stand on the shoulders of giants today and are truly elated that the cheese that we’re producing has been chosen as the best in the country,” she stated.
“We’re absolutely delighted to bring this award home to Leitrim and share our success with our small team and the farmers who provide us with milk, and that we can all be part of creating something so significant in the Irish food landscape,” she added.
“My great grandmother left Ireland in the late 1800’s and my mother, Lisa, had a notion to come back to the land of her grandparents and create something as a legacy for her life and to her ancestors, and we couldn’t think of a more fitting and incredible way to do that than by winning this award,” Gypsy continued.
Chair of CÁIS Dan Hegarty spoke about how the Irish Cheese Awards positively affect the long-term future and success of Irish Farmhouse Cheesemaking, and the impact it has on individual artisan producers.
“The biannual Irish Cheese Awards is a very important event in the diary of Irish Farmhouse Cheesemakers due to the calibre of judges involved which has a significant impact on individual Irish artisan cheese producers,” he stated.
“This in turn has a very positive effect on the long-term future, viability, and success of the Irish Farmhouse Cheese Industry, which continues to thrive over the 40 plus years of CÁIS's existence," he added.
The CÁIS 2026 Irish Cheese Awards were proudly Sponsored by Sysco, Bord Bia, Traditional Cheese Co, and Horgan’s Delicatessen Supplies, and supported by Sheridans Cheesemongers, La Rousse Foods, Artisan Cheese Awards, Irish Cheese Direct and Irish Raw Milk Cheese Presidium.
Clodagh O'Sullivan, Category Manager, Dairy, PB & Organic at Sysco Ireland, said that the awards recognise the people behind Ireland's thriving cheese sector.
"Sysco Ireland is proud to support the Irish Cheese Awards and celebrate the exceptional quality, innovation and craftsmanship that make Irish cheese so special. The awards are a fantastic opportunity to recognise the people, families and businesses behind the country’s thriving cheese sector and the passion and skill that goes into every product,” she commented.
“At Sysco, we work closely with many of Ireland’s cheesemakers, helping to bring their products to chefs and customers across the food service industry. We are delighted to support CÁIS in celebrating the diversity and quality of Irish cheese, and congratulate all of this year’s entrants, finalists and winners on their achievements,” she added.
The full list of this year’s winners covering all Gold, Silver, and Bronze Awards is available to view online via the CÁIS website