I'm surrounded by cheese. Not literally I suppose, it just feels like it. But be assured, this is a good thing. Scattered on my desk are a dozen recipe cards with colorful, artistic photos of Swiss cheese, Cheddar cheese, Gruyere, and Colby. More photos show mouth-watering meals made with these gourmet Wisconsin cheeses, such as "Classic Wisconsin Macaroni and Cheese", Wisconsin Colby Cheese Scones", "Carrot Muffins with Wisconsin Cheddar", and naturally, "Wisconsin Cheddary Beer Soup". I have the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board to thank for these recipes. This passionate group of cheese enthusiasts dedicates their lives to making ordinary folks crave gourmet, world-championship-winning, Wisconsin cheeses. But this is a good thing too. Otherwise we ordinary folks would miss out on some of the best food in the world.
And where does gourmet cheese come from? COWS! That's right folks, those championship bovines! In fact next to my monitor hangs a large wall calendar featuring a different cow(s) every month. I picked this calendar out. I could have chosen photos of Wisconsin porches like my co-worker did, but I chose cows. I confess however, that by the third week of every month, the facial expressions of the featured cows somehow change from adorable to slightly sinister. This perceptual change reflects my own paranoia I'm sure. But March's cow is different! Everyone in the office has commented on what a grand cow this Holstein is. She's the finest Holstein we've ever seen, and living in Wisconsin, we've seen quite a few!
Click on "continue reading..." for more about cows, gourmet cheese, Wisconsin's winners in the World Championship Cheese Contest, and how to get the winners.
And what makes championship cows, besides good breeding? GRASS! That's right! Wisconsin's prosperous dairy industry owes its success to our humble, green, succulent grass. We in Wisconsin grow the finest milk-producing grass in the world. It's not just our grass, however. It's our weeds too! Yes, our award-winning cheese-making cows graze on a bountiful pasture of weeds, mixed grasses, wildflowers, and clovers. As my farmer friend says, "We're outstanding in our field!"
So when I read Jeanne Carpenter's post on her blog, The Cheese Underground, about California's efforts to claim the title "America's Dairy Land" I wasn't overly concerned that California would succeed. As Jeanne points out, most of California's dairy farms are agribusinesses with 500+ cows hooked up to metal milking carousels. Are these really the happy cows California's commercials depict? In contrast, Wisconsin cows live in small herds, typically less than 100 individuals. And the cows spend most of their day out to pasture. Commuters driving home through the countryside will see the cows meandering back to their milking barn. A recent agricultural study found that cows who had been individually named by the farmer gave more milk than anonymous cows. The study concluded that the name itself didn't cause the difference, but the name indicated the higher level of individual attention each cow received. It's this combination of individual attention, a rich, natural diet, and the luxury of open-air, bucolic grazing that adds the extra creaminess to the extra volume in the Wisconsin dairyman's milk yield. So sure, California may make more milk, but which milk would you rather drink?
Well, the judges at the World Championship Cheese Contest were pretty clear about which cheese they would rather eat. In the 2008 contest, Wisconsin earned 1st place in 27 out of 77 categories (31.2%). In contrast, California earned three blue ribbons, (one was for string cheese). Next week Wisconsin and California will meet up again in the United States Championship Contest held on Green Bay Packer's home turf, Lambeau Field. Wisconsin cheese enthusiasts will rush the field in celebration.
Meanwhile, the rest of us ordinary Wisconsinites will be dining on the local cheeses we pick up at our grocers'. Perhaps we'll notice, or perhaps we won't, that the cheese in our hands won this national prize or that international award. We'll just know we like it and we'll drop it into the cart with the other Wisconsin staples: butter, cream, and milk. At home we'll eat our cheeses plain, or with nuts, fruits and breads, or cooked into soups, casseroles, and desserts, and enjoy them with wine and beer. It's our lifestyle, nothing fancy. Just gourmet without the attitude. Kind of like Wallace and Gromit. We're just living our good life in Wisconsin. And it's getting better every day now that our ground considers thawing and our miracle grasses prepare to grow.
If you can't get gourmet, championship Wisconsin cheese at your grocers', you can order it on-line through Wisconsinmade.com. Wisconsinmade's website gives artisan cheese-makers a way to sell their cheeses beyond Wisconsin's borders. Wisconsinmade.com can even ship some award-winning cheeses overseas. Here are cheeses now available that are made by Wisconsin cheese-makers who took top prizes at the World Championship Cheese Contest.
Havarti, Dill Havarti, Muenster, and Cheese Curds by Decatur Dairy. The World Championship Cheese Contest awarded Decatur Dairy Best of Class for their Muenster Cheese; Second place for their Havarti Cheese, and Third place for their Havarti Dill Cheese.
Roth Kase Favorites Gourmet Cheese Gift Box
Award-winning Cheese of the Month Club March is the last month it's cold enough to send many of the cheeses via standard shipping. From June through August, it's just too warm to ship hard cheese at all. (But you won't hear Wisconsinites complaining.) Click on the link for WI Recipes using cheese, beer, or brats. Receive $5.00 off any Wisconsinmade.com purchase by entering this offer code with your order: FBLOG309. Offer expires April 1, 2009.
Sheep, Goats, and Cows Cheese Gift Box by Cedar Grove Dairy
Champion Award Winning Cheese By Babcock Hall Dairy
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