Basement Beginnings

In late 1980s England, Skunk #1 genetics from Sensi Seeds—descended from Sacred Seeds and Sam “the Skunkman”—found their way into suburban grow rooms. Around 1988–1989, one pack produced a unique outlier: pungent, sour, and unmistakably funky. It wasn’t citrus or pine but smelled of cheddar and damp earth. The plant was cloned, renamed “Cheese,” and quietly circulated among trusted growers.

The Exodus Years

In the early 1990s, the Cheese clone reached the Exodus Collective, a Luton-based squat and sound-system crew known for community housing projects and free parties on Marsh Farm. Under sodium lamps, the cut survived and multiplied—an underground crop for an underground movement. It became both symbol and soundtrack of the UK’s counterculture.

Law and Loopholes

After the 1994 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act cracked down on raves, Exodus shifted to semi-legal events and community projects. Police raids only amplified their legend. By 2000, “Exodus Cheese” had evolved beyond a strain name—it represented defiance, independence, and local pride, embodying the resilience of Britain’s underground scene.

Clone to Cult Classic

The original Cheese remained a clone-only variety. One mother plant sustained a national network thanks to its heavy yields, short flowering cycle, and overwhelming aroma that made secrecy nearly impossible. By the mid-2000s, the scent of Cheese defined the air of Britain’s underground grow culture.

Seeds and Trophies

In 2006, Big Buddha Seeds crossed the original clone with an Afghani male, producing the first Cheese seed line and winning first place in the Indica category at the High Times Cannabis Cup. Paradise Seeds’ Original Cheese IBL (from a 2003 clone) and Green House Seeds’ Exodus Cheese soon followed, spreading the strain across Europe. “Cheese” became the UK’s loudest export—distinct, potent, and instantly recognizable.

Funk Spreads

Amsterdam coffee shops began featuring Blue Cheese, Chiesel, and Dairy Queen, while Spanish and Dutch breeders introduced new hybrids. The Cheese terpene profile—sweet, musty, and musky—defined the pre-dessert terpene era, setting the stage for later flavor revolutions.

Cultural Frequency

Cheese was never luxury cannabis—it was “working-class weed.” It fueled raves, studio sessions, and small flats, symbolizing British defiance through the 2000s. Its smell carried the identity of a generation that built community through music, rebellion, and self-sufficiency.

Fading Echoes

By the early to mid-2010s, new terp profiles from Cookies, Gelato, and Zkittlez began to dominate global markets. Still, UK voices like Dank of England, Team 10 Extracts, and curators such as Jade Marie Kush kept the Cheese legacy alive, bridging the old-school funk with the new-school flavor era.

Legacy

The UK Cheese era proved that one phenotype could move a nation. From one squat to thousands of grow tents, Cheese became a movement rooted in community, creativity, and defiance. It remains one of Britain’s greatest cannabis exports and a living relic of its underground spirit.

For Milo (1974–2023)

Breeder, innovator, and bridge-builder—his work carried British cannabis from the underground to international respect. Cheese forever.

YOUTUBE VIDEO

— Nugg Notes

Sources:

• Royal Queen Seeds. “The History of Cheese Marijuana Strains.” Royal Queen Seeds, n.d., https://www.royalqueenseeds.com/us/content/182-the-history-of-cheese-marijuana-strains. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025. 

• “History of the Cheese Strain.” Alchimia Grow Shop, 10 July 2025, https://www.alchimiaweb.com/blogen/history-cheese-strain/. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025. 

• “Sam the Skunkman: The Evolution of Hybrids.” Sensi Seeds, 16 Sept. 2025, https://sensiseeds.com/en/blog/sam-the-skunkman-the-evolution-of-hybrids/. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025. 

• “19. High Times Cannabis Cup 2006.” SeedFinder.eu, https://seedfinder.eu/en/database/cup-winner/high-times-cannabis-cup/2006. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025. 

• “Original Cheese (Paradise Seeds) :: Cannabis Strain Info.” SeedFinder.eu, https://seedfinder.eu/en/strain-info/original-cheese/paradise-seeds. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025. 

• “Exodus Cheese (Feminised).” Green House Seed Company Shop, https://shop.greenhouseseeds.nl/feminised-cannabis-seeds/exodus-cheese/. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025. 

• Carey, Jim, and Tim Malyon. “A New Deal Down on the Farm?” Squall Magazine, n.d., https://squallmagazine.com/f/f-a-new-deal.html. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025. 

• “The Legacy of Milo Yung AKA Big Buddha.” Soft Secrets, 8 May 2023, https://softsecrets.com/en-GB/article/legacy-milo-yung-aka-big-buddha. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.