In the Land of Sheep and Goats…

 Just like a good “Throwback Thursday”, I enjoy looking through some of my earlier posts to see where I have been and what I have already reviewed…One in particular caught my eye this week and I thought that I needed to revisit the region – “Regional Cheeses of the Northeast” was a story I wrote about my travels up to Albany, New York exploring several of the cheeses that could be found there. Right after I re-read this story, I grabbed my keys to head down to visit my local cheesemonger when I stopped to take took a closer look at my “Black Sheep” keyring from Old Chatham Sheepherding Creamery. I knew that this was the cheese lineup that I wanted to share with you today. 

For as long as I can remember, Old Chatham Sheepherding Company has used a “Black Sheep” as their logo….I am guessing that it lends itself towards “leading your own path and not always following the rest of the flock.” If so, this path they have been on has been turning heads and winning awards for the last quarter century. 

Tom and Nancy Clark started the company in 1993 and within five years Bon Appétit Magazine had already named them “Artisan of the Year” in 1998 and they had a handful of awards and were gaining steady recognition. Tom had raised sheep as a young boy, but now that he was grown, he found the opportunity that he had been looking for and relocated from Connecticut to upstate New York, where he started to develop a sheep farm. Starting with 150 sheep on a 600 acre farm, he grew the flock to nearly 1,200 sheep within those first ten years. 

Having the desire to create a “Roquefort-like cheese”, Tom hired Benoit Maillol, a native of France and he became the head cheesemaker for the creamery. Benoit was there from the beginnings and their little creamery grew at the same rapid pace as the farm. 

While Hudson Valley Camembert may have been one of their earliest releases, all attention (and excitement) was now focused on their latest creation - Ewe’s Blue, a beautiful blue cheese made from the milk of their East Friesian crossbred sheep. It may be slightly milder than Roquefort with smaller “eye structure”, but making it from sheep’s milk adds a creaminess and texture that puts it in a class of domestic cheeses by itself.

I thoroughly enjoyed this cheese with some amazing organic black figs from local Maywood Farms and a glass of Bogle® Vineyards 2018 Reserve Chardonnay. (Normally I would not pair a white wine with a blue cheese, but this vintage of wine had a light honey and apricot tone to it that truly made this a summertime treat).

 Thinking that was the end of the story, I was ready to sign off (and enjoy the cheese) when I learned there was a second part to the story.

 It turned out that Tom and Nancy sold their farm to Dave and Sally Galton in 2014. Dave was no stranger to sheep as he has spent the last 34 years as a professor of Animal Sciences at Cornell University and had advised the original owners in the past.

Dave expanded the operations and moved the farm out to Groton, New York which is in the Finger Lake region of upstate New York.

 Dave told one reporter, “There are not more than 12,000 dairy sheep in this country, and 2,000 of them are right here” he proudly stated. He continued by saying “Until recently most cheese from sheep was imported from France and Italy. Today, Americans want artisan cheese and they want it local. They want to know where it’s coming from. They want the assurance of purity.”

  Dave was right, as Americans have fallen in love with Sheep and Goat cheeses. 

That’s when I realized that this cheese company had another blue in their lineup: 

Blue Moon – While goat cheeses like fresh Chèvre log are quite common these days, finding a blue cheese made from goat’s milk is rare…well, as rare as a ‘Blue Moon’ (the second full moon within a month).

Brothers Max and Trystan Sandvoss had been apprenticing at a few artisanal creameries, but in 2010, they decided to form their own Goat Dairy ~ First Light Farm & Creamery was born. 

In 2017, they joined forces with Old Chatham and First Light Farm & Creamery became the brand name of their goat milk products.

First Light Farm & Creamery is proud of the quality of their goat’s milk that comes from animals that feed on a non-GMO diet. 

Since peaches are in season, I enjoyed this Blue Moon Blue Cheese with grilled peaches. This cheese has a mild, sweet blue flavor, with a soft, creamy texture. This is the goat cousin of their Ewe’s Blue.

If that wasn’t enough, in 2019 the cheese world stopped and took special notice. Out of 1,742 entries Old Chatham took home not one, but two “Best of Show” placements for their accomplishments (and support) at the 2019 American Cheese Society Awards. 

These two cheeses were developed with the help and guidance of Old Chatham, then were expertly aged by the retailers who they were created for. Truly a wonderful acknowledgement to the excellent cheesemakers at Old Chatham.

I am proud to see how far the American artisan cheese production has advanced over the years…Today’s feature cheeses are two of the best.

Thank you very much for the samples Max, they were very much enjoyed and appreciated!

Until next week,

Trevor