Cheese Buyer - May 2025

love to be able to showcase some of them in the shop,” she says. Certified cheese professional and educator Kyra James, a member of the American Cheese Society, says makers in the US are paying a huge amount of attention to what’s happening on the scene overseas, especially the UK. There has been, she reveals, a resurgence in the country of speciality food producers since the 80s with a major factor for lack of exporting (apart from trade issues) being the scale of production, which has tended to be small, feeding into local marketplaces. “In the last 10 to 15 years that scale has grown through more access and more producers. The larger producers get, the more people can enjoy the cheeses. Smaller producers have grown in size whether themselves, or by forming partnerships and co- operatives with other farmers. That has allowed them to have a national footprint,” she explains. Another massive change, that’s ongoing, is of the overall vision and perception of American cheese amongst natives. “American is a 16 @specialityfood A merica might not be the first place you think of when conjuring an image in your mind of artisanal, traditional farmhouse cheeses. However, slowly but surely a dairy revolution is happening. Driven by rapidly growing consumer interest in natural ingredients, regenerative farming and farmstead produce, a new type of cheesemaker is emerging and evolving in the States. Founded across the country, from the lush pastures of Vermont, to city farms settled just outside of the hubbub of urban life, these are producers experts say we should be taking notice of. Jen Grimstone-Jones of The Pangbourne Cheese Shop, who last year completed professional qualifications with the American Cheese Society, says there’s a huge passion in the country for fine food, adding there are “some incredible cheeses being made”. They are, “proper artisan cheeses, crafted by hand on small farms. We just don’t get to see any of it over here. I think a lot of these cheeses would excite our customers, but it’s impossible to import them. I would very industrial country. 90% of our dairy comes fromWisconsin, and a lot of that is industrialised. You have to move to the shorelines and the lush pastures to experience and find these more artisan cheeses.” There is a strong and growing network, Kyra adds, of customers and consumers who appreciate the value of fresh, local food, and supporting the local economy. It’s a movement she hopes will continue to flourish. We know British cheesemongers and wholesalers will be keeping a keen eye on the burgeoning American cheese scene. Here are just 10 varieties Jen and Kyra recommend trying ROGUE RIVER BLUE, ROGUE CREAMERY, OREGON This is Jen’s favourite, and a top winner at the World Cheese Awards in 2019. Its flavour is influenced by being finished in grapevine leaves soaked in pear spirit. “It has such a complex profile that it’s almost impossible to pick out the individual flavours,” she says. HARBISON, JASPER HILL FARM, VERMONT “This is a top producer with success grown through the support of and support from their local community. With that growth they’ve been able to sell internationally,” says Kyra. Regeneratively run Jasper Hill Farm operates in a biodiverse landscape, where the cows are grazed on grass, and on homegrown hay, used as sileage in the winter. Their rawmilk cheeses are made in the on-site creamery, featuring copper vats reclaimed from France’s Jura region. Jen adores their cheese too. “Their whole set up is amazing, from producing some excellent cheeses, to maturing other makers’ cheeses in their own caves. Harbison is a bit like a Vacherin Mont d’Or. It is encircled by a band of locally produced spruce, but when cut the cheese is so soft and unctuous that it runs off the plate – just perfect with a slice of sourdough.” HOOLIGAN, CATO CORNER FARM, CONNECTICUT Kyra likes this farmstead maker, which produces cheese by hand from a herd of 45 Jersey cows, raised on a pasture-based diet without additives. Hooligan is their signature washed rind variety, made in a single wheel, bathed in brine once a week, and aged for 60 to 75 days. It has a similar taste to French Munster. KUNIK, NETTLE MEADOW FARM, NEW YORK “There’s nothing better to round off a cheeseboard than this goats’ cheese, made from a mixture of goats’ milk and cow’s cream. They combine into the most delicious, 10 AMERICAN CHEESES TO TRY Across the pond, cheesemakers are working hard to replicate the success of the modern British craft cheese movement