Cheddar (The Stag)
- Producer
- Deer Creek / Artisan Cheese Exchange
- Country
- United States
- Region
- Wisconsin
- Size
- 13 in diameter x 4 in height
- Weight
- 22 lbs
- Website
- www.cheese-exchange.com/DeerCreek/
- Milk
- Cow
- Treatment
- Pasteurised
- Classification
- Firm
- Rennet
- Microbial
- Rind
- Cloth Wrapped
The concept for the range of Deer Creek cheeses was developed by Chris Gentine of Artisan Cheese Exchange in Wisconsin.
Artisan Cheese Exchange is a company that primarily focuses on the export of American cheeses overseas. In a move designed to differentiate their cheddars within the international marketplace, Chris used his training as a Wisconsin Master Cheese Grader to carefully select various batches of cheese deemed suitable for further aging, and used Wisconsin grading standards as a certification of the cheeses’ quality. Maturation and affinage of the cheeses is done in conjunction with Wisconsin Aging and Grading.
The Stag a hand-hooped and wood box aged cheddar produced by Master Cheesemaker Kerry Henning of Hennings Cheese in Kiel, Wisconsin. Kerry has been a certified “Wisconsin Master Cheesemaker” since 1999.
The Stag is produced in 22-pound bandaged daisy wheels. Aged for at least 17 months, it’s an older version of Deer Creek’s The Fawn.
The cheese is made from milk sourced from an area of Wisconsin where the glacial lobes of the last Ice Age converged and then receded, creating the distinctive terroir of the region. Kerry uses a unique culture set, also used in Deer Creek’s Vat 17 cheese, to give this cheddar a fuller and more complex flavor. Up-front notes are smooth and a background of caramel can be detected.
Pairings
Pair it with a Syrah, a Scotch Ale or a French Cider.
