Hefted to our land: Cumbria's Herdwick

I interview Jon Watson of Yew Tree Farm to learn more about Cumbria’s famous sheep.

I associate many things with Cumbria. Carefully built dry stone walls. White-washed farm houses. Tourists’ cars parked in front of gates. Ubiquitous as these are, nothing reminds me of my home county quite as much as a flock of smiley-faced, Herdwick sheep. 

This is for good reason: 99% of these grey-wooled animals are farmed in the central and western parts of The Lake District, the areas where I grew up. Herdwicks have been a fixture of this jagged landscape from around the 10th century. Before the Magna Carta was signed or the Black Death endured, Herdwicks roamed our fells. 

Farmers have long enjoyed working with the breed for a number of reasons. First and foremost is their ability to live on the Cumbrian fells all year round, surviving with minimal, and often even no, support.

Like any good Cumbrian, Herdwicks are also territorial. Ewes teach their lambs to remain on the same heaf that the flock has inhabited for generations. In a land where minutes of aimless wandering can lead to an hour’s long drive, this characteristic is particularly prized.

It’s not only farmers that have appreciated Herdwicks over the years, but many others too. Beatrix Potter is perhaps the sheep’s most famous admirer.

During her life, Beatrix served as the president of the Herdwick Sheep Breeders’ Association. She also used her considerable earnings to purchase 15 farms during her lifetime. Upon her death, she left all of these farms to the National Trust, stipulating that Herdwicks should be raised on them.

Yew Tree Farm, located in Yewdale Valley near Coniston, is one of these 15 farms. It boasts around 700 acres of land and an idyllic farmhouse that was featured in the 2006 film “Miss Potter.” 

Jon Watson currently runs the farm and, per Beatrix’s wishes, has been raising Herdwicks on it for more than 20 years.

‘They are a lot hardier than any other breed of sheep,’ Jon tells me, during our interview. ‘They have a double fleece which means they have hair as well as wool. There are hairs on the outside of the coat that allow the rain to drip off [...] which is obviously useful in Cumbria.’

A very pampered Herdwick in Ennerdale

Herdwicks are not just a well-adapted part of the area’s proverbial furniture; they also produce succulent, slightly gamey meat that has an excellent reputation; Herdwick was served at Queen Elizabeth II's coronation banquet in 1953. Today, it's a feature at many leading restaurants.

‘They carry a great amount of flavour,’ Jon says. ‘The meat is darker; that’s partly to do with diet but also the breed itself. Each breed tastes slightly different and, in my opinion, Herdwick is the best of the best [...] Anyone who aspires for a Michelin star tends to go for Herdwick.’

Jon would know. He supplies some of the country’s most-decorated chefs including Simon Rogan and Ryan Blackburn, both of whom boast the coveted stars. 

While Jon is too modest to say it, many chefs who aspire for Michelin stars don’t go for any old Herdwick, they go for Yew Tree Farm’s. This is because the animals reared at Yew Tree Farm are treated with great care and respect. 

‘We don’t feed them lots of concentrate. We don’t use fertilisers. The Herdwicks we have on our fells are enjoying the nearest thing to their natural environment as possible. They have a long, natural life,’ Jon says, with well-placed pride. 

Aside from the sheeps’ living conditions, Jon has also put a great deal of thought into when the animals are slaughtered. Many commercial lambs from lowland breeds are slaughtered at four months old. Due to their slowly growing nature, most Herdwick lambs aged between eight and 12 months before being slaughtered. Jon, however, takes a different approach entirely. 

‘I don’t sell anything as lamb. I don’t think lambs have had a chance to have a life or gain flavour. So, mine are all between a year or two years old when slaughtered for hogget or five years if being sold as mutton [...] If you think about it, lamb is the equivalent of veal in the cattle industry. It's a much lighter coloured meat, it hasn’t had a chance to gain flavour. It's just been fed milk.’

Ringing endorsements of Yew Tree Farm’s meat from the likes of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Jean-Christophe Novelli and, of course, Simon Rogan, suggest Jon is on to something. That being said, it's not just celebrity chefs who enjoy Yew Tree Farm’s Herdwick, but the public too. In fact, Jon tells me that mail orders form the largest part of his business.

Although he regularly ships his hogget and mutton all over the country, Jon manages to keep a few pieces of meat for himself: ‘In the summer we, like everyone else, like to barbecue. Leg steaks are always good for that as are chops; you can’t beat a barbecued chop,’ he tells me. ‘In winter, we love lamb shoulder. It's so easy to cook, just stick it in the oven, you can’t go wrong. It's sweet meat. Absolutely beautiful.’

Given everything I’ve learnt about Yew Tree Farm’s Herdwick, I’d have to agree.