Cheese by Hand

Kurt Dammeier is a unique and welcome addition to the world of artisan cheesemaking. People might wonder why an entrepreneur like Kurt would be interested in the cheese business- if you’ve listened to any of our other interviews via Cheese by Hand you know it couldn’t possibly be for the money. Well, Kurt is a [...]

Even before we moved to Pat Morford’s neighborhood I was a huge fan of her cheese. Her legendary, smokey, leaf-wrapped chevre- Up in Smoke- landed at Murray’s Cheese just in time for Thanksgiving back in 2004 and my enthusiasm for her products is still going strong. Her herd has grown some since we visited her [...]

You would think that I would tire of these cheesemakers but I swear they just keep getting more interesting. There were entire chunks of footage from my interview with David that didn’t necessarily fit into the “story of Rogue Creamery” but were still super interesting. Similar to the bonus footage I posted for Fiscalini this [...]

Anyone who has ever visited Rogue Creamery in Central Point, Oregon will understand what I mean when I say that this interview delivers on the “Rogue Experience”. Owners David Gremmels and Carey Bryant have approached their management of this creamery with such careful consideration to its history that it is hard to believe they were [...]

Talk about a cheese legend! Mary Kheen is the creator of one of if not the most widely recognized American original artisan cheese: Humboldt Fog. Our conversation with Mary left us with a lot to think about in terms of how much the industry has changed since she started making cheese. If you listen carefully [...]

I could not pass on all the footage from our time spent with Mariano Gonzales, head cheesemaker at Fiscalini. It, or rather he, speaks for himself. This segment is longer than usual and less edited but no less good. Enjoy. Bonus Fiscalini Footage Audio

John Fiscalini is a straight-shooter. This interview provided wonderful insight into what it means to be an ethical dairyman. My respect for the Fiscalinis is tremendous largely because they stand so firmly behind what they do and how they do it. If you have tasted their cheeses, you know that they hold on their own [...]

There is never a dull moment with Paula Lambert. Spend just a couple minutes with her and you can understand immediately how it is possible that fresh mozzarella went from being virtually unknown to award-winning in a matter of years. The Mozzarella Company is one of our industry’s founders in that she helped create the [...]

Sometimes the most we can hope for in times of transition is that we will look back on them and feel proud of how we conducted ourselves while we were going through them. One of the benefits of the audio portion of our project lagging so seriously behind our actual tour is that there is [...]

Character. That is the first word that comes to mind when I think of Chef John Folse- followed closely by Dreamer. I’ve never met anyone like him and it was such a pleasure to spend a day with him learning about Cajun and Creole traditions. His passion is palpable and his projects are huge. We [...]

Honestly we could have almost posted this interview in its entirety because Alyce and Doug are so engaging. I never get tired of listening to them talk about cheesemaking or dairying let alone any of the other million hobbies they do. Listening to them over the past weeks I have been reminded of how absolutely [...]

Sweet Grass Dairy Interview Listening to our conversation with Jessica and Jeremy Little is a perfect reminder of just how accessible the people making our food can be. Their honesty and humility still blow me away, not to mention their tenacity. Their operation is an inspiring example of the generation of cheesemakers who are broadening the [...]

Steve Tate does such a nice job articulating the vision of the farm and dairy that his family runs. We tip our hats to Ginny Tate, Steve’s sister, who mustered the confidence years ago to continue developing and restoring her farm in the face of doubt and ridicule from local residents. Their farm is a [...]

How fortuitous that we would hit this farm in our audio chain a couple weeks after their landmark cheese, GRAYSON, was announced runner up for Best in Show and First Place in the Farmstead Cow’s Milk category at the 2008 American Cheese Society Competition in Chicago. This may sound like a podunky thing but there [...]

Most cheese enthusiasts in the U.S. are familiar with the impassioned debates about raw milk and raw milk cheese. Considering the massive amount of press time spent covering food safety issues I am doubtful that this issue will be resolved in the near future. Basically the laws within the U.S. prevent the production or importing [...]