News: UVM Cheese Artisan Institute

[CSASphinx]

If you're a fan of Vermont cheese and the variety and quality of the small artisinal makers that dot the countryside, this could be good news.

The University of Vermont announced recently that it secured $500,000 in funding for its newly-formed Cheese Artisan Institute which has a mission of providing the latest research on cheese making, outreach to the cheesemaking community and educational opportunities to help cheesemakers hone their craft.

The $$ come from Vermont Senator Jim Jeffords, The John Merck Fund and an anonymous donor. The institute intends to use the funding to provide a range of services under one roof, from understanding regulatory complexities that govern the cheese trade domestically and internationally to finding a fellow cheesemaker who can help small companies replicate an award-winning batch of cheese.

In addition, the Cheese Artisan Institute will conduct cheese making classes along four tracks, including cheese making basics for beginners and a Master Artisan Cheesemaker Program for experienced cheesemakers.

In short, the program hopes to provide the kind of support to small-scale cheesemakers that is fairly common in Europe and virtually non-existent in the United States

The institute is an outgrowth of the Northeast Center for Food Entrepreneurship, a joint venture of UVM and Cornell University. It is co-directed by two UVM professors of nutrition and food science: Catherine Donnelly and Paul Kindstedt.

So, is this the kind of thing people think will generally increase the quality and variety of the artisan cheeses we can get here in the Northeast?

Now if we can only get people to age their cheeses long enough…..

[GG Mora]

There's already damned good cheese coming out of Vermont, though a lot of the really good stuff is produced on such a small scale that it's simply not available elsewhere (Lazy Lady goat's cheeses and Woodcock Farm sheep's cheeses come to mind). That said, this program (and what a ground-breaker!) should serve to accelerate Vermont's dominance of the US cheese market.

Good new cheeses are cropping up all the time. At our farmer's market this week(West River Farmer's Market, Saturdays 9 -1 in Londonderry), I came across a new goat cheese producer from West Pawlet – Consider Bardwell Farm. Peter Kindall (I think that's his name) worked as affineur at Artisanale in between trips to France, Italy and Spain to learn the cheesemaking trade. Really knows his s***. His fresh goat cheese was delicious – bright, tangy and creamy, if a wee oversalted. He promises his aged varieties in another two weeks, and plans on expanding into sheep's and then cow's milk cheeses. A welcome addition to the fold.

[CSASphinx]

GG,

While there is no question Vermont has a bunch of really fine cheesemakers, it might be a stretch to say that it is the dominant player in this regard.

Wisconsin, California, Virginia, New York, Massachusetts and even Maine ( I have to plug my home state) all have more than a handful of very talented cheesemakers. My hope is that the program at UVM is so successful that other states or organizations may take notice and try similar measures, which would only lead to more truly delicious cheese and better choices for everyone.

[Fat Guy]

This is a potentially fantastic development. I hope the program will be truly artisanal in its orientation, with an emphasis on making cheeses that compete at a true European level. The US has the ability to make such cheeses but only a tiny percentage of a percentage of a percentage of our production is anything but mass-produced, bland cheese. I hope in particular that this project will provide marketing support and education so that it will be a simple matter for people in New York, Los Angeles, etc., to learn about these cheeses and to get them either from local retailers or via easy online ordering.

[slbunge]

There's already damned good cheese coming out of Vermont, though a lot of the really good stuff is produced on such a small scale that it's simply not available elsewhere (Lazy Lady goat's cheeses and Woodcock Farm sheep's cheeses come to mind). That said, this program (and what a ground-breaker!) should serve to accelerate Vermont's dominance of the US cheese market.

I'm from Wisconsin where we have a few 'artisinal' gems but are far more geared to mass-production of booooooooring cheeses.

The concept of this program seems great and it seems well-matched with the state of Vermont (or my interpretation of what Vermont is about). Artisinal cheesemakers are well served by regions with strong ties to the land, an independent streak, and a thriving rural economy.

I'd really like to see programs like this add to the depth and breadth of cheeses we can all get at our local cheese shops.

[Fat Guy]

I am, by the way, an alumnus of the University of Vermont.

[CSASphinx]

I'd really like to see programs like this add to the depth and breadth of cheeses we can all get at our local cheese shop

But therein lies another problem. While major metro areas have places like Murray's where you can eat your way through the store with a knowledgeable guide handing you piece after piece on the edge of a knife, there are sadly not enough place like that in New England where the population is thin and the cheese case is plastic-wrapped self-serve.

That said, the Boston area is truly lucky to have someone like Ihsan Gurdal of Formaggio Kitchen, whose dedication to cheese is so complete that he spent a couple of years in France, learning about the conditions in the cheese caves, then set about replicating the temperature and humidity conidtions in his own man-made cheese "cave" in the Cambridge store.

What Fat Guy said about education is also important and I think he meant to educate consumers. Most Americans don't know how truly delicious (and varied) good cheese can be because all we know is 24 differnet flavors of vanilla -- and not very good vanilla at that.

[GG Mora]

But therein lies another problem. While major metro areas have places like Murray's where you can eat your way through the store with a knowledgeable guide handing you piece after piece on the edge of a knife, there are sadly not enough place like that in New England where the population is thin and the cheese case is plastic-wrapped self-serve.

Ain't that the truth.

For a while there, the Brattleboro Co-op employed the very knowledgeable Henry Tewksbury, author of "The Cheeses of Vermont", as director of its expansive cheese department. One could, indeed, sample piece after piece and get quite an education in the bargain. I spent about an hour one afternoon as Henry's captive audience, tasting goat cheeses from Vermont and France. That fellow is sorely missed.

While there is no question Vermont has a bunch of really fine cheesemakers, it might be a stretch to say that it is the dominant player in this regard.

I didn't mean to suggest that Vermont dominates the artisanal cheese scene – though it's a solid player – but that this new program could accelerate its ride to the top, and I do believe there is the potential for that. I've tasted a lot of incredible stuff that hasn't yet been made available to the public or is only available in a very limited regional market.

I am, by the way, an alumnus of the University of Vermont.

Yes, but do you make cheese?

[johnnyd]

I am also a UVM alumni, and came there from Switzerland, so I know my cheese. Loved the location and the spirit of the place so much I ended up staying in Burlington for 17 years. Ever the enthusiast when it comes to things culinary, I followed closely the struggle of artisnal cheese making while there as well as other local food ventures, some of these folks were my friends. Now I have lived in Maine for ten years and I'm constantly disappointed at the quality of local cheese... until this year.

See Marion Burros article in NYT Dining/Style "Say Cheese, and New England Smiles", June 23, 04 to learn how much progress has been made.

Vermont Cheesemakers are a dominant player in this regard, and no, it's not a stretch. The new UVM program will meld the solid Agricultural Foundation upon which the school was founded in the 18th century, with the determination of an educated, well-traveled, local population and very soon Vermont Cheese will beat the spores off any other state's cheese that it doesn't leave behind already... like Maine.

[CSASphinx]

Hey johhnyd

Not trying to stir up the pot at all here. The quality of the cheese being produced in Vermont was never in question. I merely thought calling the state THE dominant force in farmstead and artisan cheese making was an overstatement...considering the relative strength and quality exhibited in other states. Not that awards are necessarily an accurate barometer, but recent awards from the American Cheese Society bear this out. And even though judging is subjective, I think ACS has as much credibility since there aren't always 1st place winners in every category. If none of the entries is up to snuff, they'll simply place the best of that year's bunch second or third and move on.

But to get this back on track....I think the program UVM is launching is important and I really hope it helps bring more cheesemakers out of the shadows, if you will, and get them wider distribution at least in the region if not nationally.

A successful program in Vermont could be used as a model in other states or regions to further the production, education (and eventually) distribution of artisan cheese. Further, this could be a godsend for smaller diary operations, particularly those in the business of cow's milk production since a successful on-the-farm cheesemaking operation is exactly the kind of thing that can help these farmers get the premium for their milk they simply can't get today selling wholesale to large scale diaries.

[rickmartin]

So, is this the kind of thing people think will generally increase the quality and variety of the artisan cheeses we can get here in the Northeast?

Now if we can only get people to age their cheeses long enough…..

Thanks for this information. As a person who has scoured the country trying to find cheesemaking programs geared toward small, artisan production, your post has rekindled my ambition.

I am in Kansas where dairy production is very small. But in my area there is a concentration of dairymen struggling to survive. I have hopes of opening a small cheese production, buying the milk at a premium from our local farmers. There are some programs out west that are designed for the farmer making cheese but none for the cheesemaker buying the milk.

When will this institute begin? Will it be available to us who will never see it happen in our state? If you have any more detailed information I would appreciate everything you can pass on.

Thanks again,

RM

[Fat Guy]

Vermont is interesting for many reasons, one of which is that it has an outsize impact on the dairy culture. It's not the nation's top dairy producing state -- I don't even think it's in the top 10 -- yet in the public consciousness it is probably the state most strongly identified with dairy, with the possible exception of Wisconsin. Ben & Jerry's, the graphic artistry of Woody Jackson, Cabot, and the UVM dairy program, among others, all have very large footprints.

[johnnyd]

Vermont Dairy products are perceived as high quality because they simply are high quality. The soil and climate are just right for the necessary conditions for production but sadly not enough at this point to become anywhere near a top producer.

THAT is what I would be happy to hear: that one day, the public consciousness towards cheese would involve a choice between artisinal cheeses and not between a Kraft product and another Kraft product.

In review, I have no business stirring up the pot (as it were) because I haven't tried many cheeses other than locally crafted and imports. There, I've said it! I yield further discussion to one who lives and breathes surrounded by Vermont Artisnal Cheesemakers, the right honourable GGMora. [applause][/applause]

Incidentally, Ben Cohen and his pal Jerry got the ice cream bug from a book on how to make ice cream, but his ingredients, Vermont-made until about the fifteenth or so year, made it a hit.

[slbunge]

The soil and climate are just right for the necessary conditions for production but sadly not enough at this point to become anywhere near a top producer.

Not sad at all. A state being tops in production has a very large downside for the artisinal cheesemaker. It is probably nearly hard to be an artisinal cheesemaker in high production states (California, Wisconsin, New York) as it is in a lesser-producing state because most (all?) high production dairy operations no longer pasture their cows (other than letting them out of the parlor to make room for the second wave of milking). It is pasturing, rather than custom designed feed, that ties the world-class cheeses to a place.

You probably didn't mean that you hope for high production from Vermont, johnnyd. Nonetheless, I thought I would pontificate.

[johnnyd]

You are exactly right, Stephen. A high-output operation sacrifices quality of product. My concern was more towards getting Vermont Chevre, for example, into the hands of the uninitiated. I want to see it receive equal billing on supermarket shelves nationwide, alongside top cheeses from Wisconsin, California, and Rick Martin's place.

It's always been my theory that a choice of better quality ingredients available to the population would improve the american diet. Since this means compromises that probably shrink the profit margins, we'll not see an effort from food conglomerates anytime soon. It's up to those at a local level.

[GG Mora]

Here's what really sucks about Vermont, and all US, cheeses: Federal regs on young cheeses made from unpasteurized milk. Some of the best cheese I've tasted have been the contraband young, raw milk cheeses that these cheesemakers make and keep for themselves and a lucky few who know when and how to ask for them. Clearly, I'm not about to out any of them in such a public place. But until the Federal Gumment lightens the fuck up on the issue, the really good stuff won't be available to the masses.

Oh, and here's a Chevre alert:

There's a new goat cheese producer in town. Consider Bardwell Farm's fresh goat cheese is tangy, bright and creamy without the chalkiness that sometimes comes with the territory. Maybe a tad on the salty side, but worth looking for. Mostly available only around SoVT at farmer's markets and small specialty food shops, it's been picked up by Murray's Cheese in NYC. Peter Kindal, the cheesemaker, spent several years back-and-forth to Europe learning the craft. He's working on building an aging facility; aged goat cheeses soon to come. He's also planning on moving into sheep's milk, and then cow's milk, cheeses. One to watch.