Cheese? Yes Please!
Seattle Hosts Celebration of Washington Cheesemakers Saturday
Will you be in the Seattle area this weekend?
(Or do you need an excuse to be there?)
The first – and we hope annual! – Washington Artisan Cheesemakers Festival is being held at the Seattle Design Center on Saturday afternoon. Featuring 20 Washington cheesemakers, the event gives enthusiasts the opportunity to meet the artisans and learn more about what makes their cheeses unique.
And – *ahem* – taste one or two along the way.
Foodtree is delighted to help the festival by providing technical support – including providing QR Codes for the tasting booths to help the new fans find where to buy their favourites!
Here’s just a small sample of what’s on offer:
Mt Townsend Creamery
Mt Townsend Creamery, one of the larger Washington producers, has just recently opened up a tasting space in Pike Market. They are perhaps best known for the soft-ripened Seastack, which uses vegetable ash ahead of ripening. It’s a popular offering and graces the cheese plates of many a fine restaurant around Washington and beyond.
Mt Townsend's Seastack is dusted in vegetable ash prior to ripening.
Golden Glen Creamery
Golden Glen Creamery, out of Bow, WA, sources milk from their own herd of Holstein, Guernsey and Jersey cows to make their range of artisan cheese. In addition to their farm store, you can find the cheese at Alder Wood Bistro, Madison Park Conservatory and many small grocers and food coops around Washington.
River Cheddar double cream cheddar from Golden Glen Creamery
Kurtwood Farms
Dinah’s Cheese from Kurtwood Farms has received consistent accolades over its lifetime. Kurt Timmermeister, a chef turned cheese maker, has recently released the book “Growing a Farmer” about his transition to living off the land that contributes to Dinah’s Cheese. His food philosophy? Eat “the very best foods in the very best ways.”
River Valley Cheese
River Valley cow and goat milk cheeses can be found across in specialty grocers, PCC and Whole Foods in Washington. One of their most popular is the Naughty Nellie raw milk tomme – a cheese that has been bathed in local Pike Brewery’s ale of the same name. Not only is their raw milk artisan cheeses winning several awards, they also offer cheesemaking classes to try your hand at it at home.
Raw milk artisan cheese from River Valley
And what is a cheese tasting without something to help wash it down? Local breweries, wineries and cideries will be on hand to advise in pairings, and artisans are providing bread, crackers, jams and sweets to accompany the cheeses.
If you’re heading to the Washington Artisan Cheese Festival – Why not grab our free iPhone app and snap a picture to keep track of your favourites? And look out for me – I’ll be there the afternoon, snapping pictures and learning a thing or two myself!
Event Details:
Washington Artisan Cheese Festival
Saturday 7th April 2012, 12pm-6pm.
Seattle Design Center
5701 6th Avenue South
Seattle, WA 98108
21+ only. Buy advance tickets here ($35) – limited tickets will be available at the door $40. Price of admission includes cheese tastings and 3 drinks for beer, cider or wine.
