Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn reveals love for Shropshire Blue cheese

The former Adams Grammar School pupil was keen to show off his Salopian credentials when he was asked to name his favourite dairy indulgence.

He named Shropshire Blue, although the actual historic link between the cheese and the county it is named after remains open to question.

Shropshire Blue, which was created in the mid-1970s, is made from pasteurised cows' milk and uses vegetable rennet.

The cheese has a deep orange-brown, natural rind and matures for a period of 10 to 12 weeks with a fat content of about 48 per cent.

It was first made in Inverness, Scotland, and then Nottingham. Only recently has the cheese been produced in Shropshire itself.

Mr Corbyn, who was a say pupil at Adams' Grammar in Newport, and also a member of Wrekin Young Socialists, said he finds cheese "very interesting" and prefers sharp English varieties to French fromage.

The 67-year-old admitted he once smuggled a whole bagful of cheese illegally into Mexico while on holiday.

"I'm passionate about English cheese," he said.

"It is better than French – it's sharper and there's more variety."

Mr Corbyn said that as a backbench MP he was a member of an obscure all-party Parliamentary group on cheese, and is still fascinated by the different types to be found on a festive cheeseboard.

"The variety of cheese in England is amazing," he said.

"I like Somerset Brie, it has a nice taste to it. And Shropshire Blue, the county where I'm from. The sharper the better."

Mr Corbyn was also keen to stress he also enjoys a little French fromage.

"Camembert is better the riper it is. It's best of all with a bit of mould on it," he said.

Mr Corbyn's love of cheese is so intense that he once filled a bag with English cheeses and tried to take them to Mexico while visiting his wife Laura Alvarez's family.

Suspicious border officials checked the bag and pointed out that dairy products are not allowed into Mexico, to which Mr Corbyn cheekily replied: "Solamente queso no mas!" – meaning, 'It's only cheese!'"

"They just said 'oh, okay then' and let me through," the Mr Corbyn added.

Earlier this year tributes were paid to the founder of Shropshire Blue cheese, who died after a short illness at the age of 89.

Dennis Biggins had a long and distinguished career as a cheese factor in Whitchurch for almost 70 years.

Just before his death he had retired from the family business S Biggins Ltd.

Creating Shropshire Blue in the mid-1970s was the pinnacle of Dennis' career, according to his family.

This was the first new British Blue cheese to be produced for several centuries. It was made at a friend of his father who was a cheesemaker in Inverness.

His son, Tom, who now runs Whitchurch-based Westry Roberts & Co, said: "He was for many years chairman and latterly president of the Cheshire Cheese Factors Association.

"He was recognised as a leading authority on cheese and frequently judged at the Dairy Show in London, as well as the Cheshire and Nantwich shows over several decades.

"My father's knowledge of cheese generally and Cheshire cheese in particular was outstanding. His opinion and expertise was always much sought after. Both myself and my sister have benefitted from the expertise he has passed on to us."

Since about 2010 Shropshire Blue has moved south, being made by the Shropshire Cheese Company, a dairy farm on the Welsh border by the Eyres Family.

Ian Eyres said: "Naturally we are very pleased that it appeals so widely.

"It does very well on the export market and it is appreciated throughout Europe and the rest of the world.

"Shropshire Blue is not the strongest of blue cheese. It is very creamy and mellow and appeals to lot of different taste buds."

Cheesemaker Dudley Martin, who is based at Ludlow Food Centre, has also been responsible for creating a unique range of cheeses, including Shropshire Blue, using milk from Oakly Park Estate's own Friesian-Holstein cows.

A variant of Shropshire Blue, called Ludlow Blue, is also made by Mr Martin.