Helene and Dick Willems started making cheese as a hobby. In the 1970s, they moved to a small farm in the beautiful mountains of Coolea in West Cork. With the extra milk from their cows, they made a gouda style cheese, which they missed from their native Holland. The neighbors caught wind of the Willems delicious creation, and soon word spread through Cork and across the country. Their son, Dick, took over the cheesemaking in 1993 as Coolea made its way into cheese shops around the world. 

We are one of those lucky cheese shops! Although the Willems at first only aged their cheese for a couple months, they, along with their exporting partners Neal’s Yard Dairy, now age a portion of the wheels from eighteen months to two years. This means the wheels we receive have more intense flavors of honey, butterscotch, hazelnuts, and bourbon – basically all the good things! Be sure to eat Coolea at room temperature for the full taste experience, perhaps with a glass of warming Irish whiskey on the side for good measure.