BEING Devon-born and Devon-bred (strong in the arm, but thick in the head), it may come as a surprise to learn that I marked St Piran’s Day yesterday.

As a proud Devonian I am very territorial about my provenance and proud of the fact I grew up on the right side of the River Tamar (by “right” I mean the opposite of left when looking at a map, not right as opposed to wrong! Okay, so I mean that way too...)

But despite being the first person to jump on a Cornish joke and point out that the toll booths on the Tamar Bridge target people leaving Cornwall coming into Devon, there is a real soft spot in our family for our neighbouring county, and a secret love for all its quirkyness, because a significant part of my family tree has roots west of the Tamar. Well, living that close to the border it was always going to happen, I suppose.

One thing I have always admired about the Cornish is their ability to share all that is great about their most beautiful of counties with the rest of the country. My great-nan, Elsie Sleeman, for example, used to grow daffodils in a field in Harrowbarrow, which were then packed up and sent by train to London from Kelly Bray station. If you visit Steam you will see this scene played out with mannequins, and some daffodils that seem to remain remarkably fresh all year round. Elsie would be impressed, especially as speed was of the essence in order to get her daffodils to the capital in perfect condition.

So I did raise a glass to St Piran last night, as I tucked into three of my favourite Cornish cheeses – which come from a small independent dairy in their own corner of Cornwall (though they probably arrived in Swindon along the M4, rather than the GWR these days).

Behind Redruth-based Curds & Croust is master cheesemaker Martin Gaylard, whose love of cheesemaking has been with him since childhood, which he proudly describes as being “at one with the curd”.

At the heart of this business is a trio of delicious soft cheeses, although there is one that I have to declare as my favourite - The Truffler. This delicious brie is infused with truffle and comes with such a delicious aroma it certainly wouldn’t take a truffle pig to track it down. It has brought home bronze prizes from the South West Cheese Awards and the Artisan Cheese Awards, which suggests I’m not the only one to find it a favourite.

The delightfully named Miss Wenna brie has also scored bronze awards at the British Cheese Awards and the Artisan Cheese Awards, and is a deliciously creamy brie for those not impressed by truffle.

Curds & Croust’s Boy Laity is a deliciously pungent camembert which is best left to mature - or so I am told, mine didn’t hang around long enough for me to put that to the test. The judges of the South West Cheese Awards saw fit to award this popular boy a gold award.

A new addition to the family is Russet Squire, which I have as yet been unable to track down. This brie is washed seven or eight times in Cornish Cider, giving it a gorgeous colour to rival even the most picturesque Poldark sunset the BBC is able to rustle up.

St Piran would most definitely approve.