"Peter's Special Cheese" from "Succession" Is Actually Very Special

After four seasons, Succession has finally come to an end—and if you’re anything like me, you’re probably feeling a lot of feelings. We’ll leave most of the finale’s details a mystery, but there’s one thing we want to talk about: the food-centered scene that takes place in the Barbados beach home of Caroline Collingwood, AKA Logan Roy’s ex-wife, and Kendall, Shiv, and Roman’s mom. 

Without spoiling any major plot points, the three siblings gather in their mom’s kitchen for some late-night nosh during the final episode. Turns out, every detail was carefully planned by Succession writers and brought to life by Sophie Michell, a Barbados-based chef and restaurateur.

According to Michell, working as a food stylist on the episode involved stocking Caroline’s kitchen with enough ingredients for multiple takes of the infamous Meal Fit for a King smoothie. The cast could add whatever they wanted to the smoothie, and one of the toughest tasks was filling the vacation home kitchen pantry with believable ingredients. “Normally as food stylists we make food look beautiful, but this was the opposite,” Michell tells us. “Lady Caroline, while she’s an aristocrat and has money, is a bit tight and not into food.” 

Along with making all the food look a bit thrifty and old—shoutout to the frozen bread ends Shiv added to Kendall’s smoothie—Michell tried to find authentic U.K. foods, including the special cheese Caroline’s husband Peter kept in the fridge (yes, the one Roman playfully licked multiple times during the episode). 

The show’s writers specifically chose Isle of Mull Cheddar, which Michell describes as a “strong vintage cheddar from the Isle of Mull in Scotland.” While Isle of Mull is a well-known cheese in the United Kingdom and can even be found in U.S. specialty shops, it was close to impossible to source on the island of Barbados. 

According to Michell, the country’s only cheese producer is Hatchman’s Dairy, based in the parish of St. Michael. Otherwise, “It’s very hard to get good quality cheese in Barbados,” says Michell. “It’s just not a place where people come to eat artisanal cheese.” Isle of Mull Cheddar was especially tough to source: Apparently, Michell and her team went all over the island to find it, and a shop on the south coast agreed to order it. 

She purchased an entire wheel, which was likely pricey—the cheese has sold for as much as $44/lb at Murray’s Cheese in New York City. “It’s definitely not a cheese you’d want licked by someone, especially if you brought it all the way from Scotland,” Michell says. 

While Roman ended up licking basically the entire wheel during the 8-10 takes, Michell says she saved a bit so they could enjoy it behind the scenes. If you can get your hands on some Isle of Mull yourself, you can go one of two routes. “Lady Caroline would have it with Branston pickle chutney, since it’s such a strong cheddar and could handle the acidity,” Michell says. 

For a more gourmet take, try pairing the cheddar with sliced pears and apples. “It also makes an amazing grilled cheese with English mustard, sweet chutney, and sourdough bread,” Michell says.