Ilchester Cheese Advent Calendar (The Crafty Herd)

Ilchester Cheese Advent Calendar 2026 :

The Ilchester cheese advent calendar is back for 2026, and it has had a proper makeover. The Ilchester Cheese Co has moved its festive cheese countdown under a new brand, The Crafty Herd 25 Days of Cheese, swapping the plain box for a tall green carton with a pink gingerbread-roof lid. Same maker, bolder identity, and a noticeably bigger line-up: 25 doors, 25 individually wrapped mini cheeses and 12 adventurous flavours to open one a day in the run-up to Christmas. It stays fridge door ready, the book-style pack splitting in half once you are past the first 12 days so it stops hogging the shelf.

The flavours lean into the bold, playful side of British cheese, not a quiet cheeseboard. Truffle Cheddar, Cheddar with Sriracha & Honey, a Speculaas-flavoured Wensleydale, Wensleydale with Chocolate & Orange, and a new-for-2026 Cheddar with Caramelised Red Onion all sit behind the little doors. With around 390g of cheese across the month, it reads as a mid-to-premium foodie gift, not a cheap stocking filler.

Who is the cheese advent calendar for?

This is an advent calendar for cheese lovers, and squarely one for grown-ups. The 12 flavours are adventurous, not child-friendly, so it suits adults, couples and foodie gift recipients who would sooner graze on Truffle Cheddar and Wensleydale with Mango & Ginger than open a chocolate window. It is suitable for vegetarians. Keep it refrigerated, and it works just as well shared over a glass of wine as it does opened solo.

Value and content of the advent calendar:

Behind the 25 doors sit 25 mini cheeses, each individually wrapped, totalling around 390g. The spread covers 12 adventurous flavours, so some turn up more than once across the month, and day 25 lands on Christmas Day, not Christmas Eve like a 24-door calendar would. At its £32.99 listed price, that is about £1.32 per mini cheese, or roughly £8.46 per 100g, which is fair for flavoured speciality cheese you would struggle to buy as a single pack. It is vegetarian and fridge door ready, with the pack designed to tear in half after the first 12 days.

=> Discover the full contents of this calendar in the CALENDAR CONTAINS tab.

Other versions / previous edition:

Until now this listing covered the original Ilchester cheese advent calendar: 24 doors, 8 cheeses (Jarlsberg, Applewood, Mexicana, Ilchester Cheddar, Red Leicester, Double Gloucester, Wensleydale with Cranberries and Wensleydale with Gingerbread), priced around £21.69. For 2026 the same maker has relaunched it as The Crafty Herd, pushing from 24 to 25 doors, from 8 cheeses to 12 flavours, and from £21.69 to £32.99. So you pay more, but you get an extra door, a wider flavour range and a far bolder box. The straightforward classics of the old edition give way to things like Truffle Cheddar and Speculaas Wensleydale.

Ilchester / The Crafty Herd discount code :

• No discount code is available for this cheese advent calendar at the moment.

You will find all the current advent calendar deals here.

Cheese Advent Calendar 2026 Release date:

The Crafty Herd edition is a 2026 festive release, sold through Amazon and supermarkets in the run-up to Christmas. Cheese calendars sell out most years, so it is worth checking stock early instead of leaving it to December. Compare the best offers at the top of this page.