The Best Cheeses of 2026: culture’s Annual List
The ultimate list of cheeses that should stay on your radar all year long Welcome to our Best Cheeses issue—a curated selection of our favorite cheeses around the globe. Featured competitions include the 2025 American Cheese Society Judging & Competition (ACS), the 2025 Good Food Awards (GFA), the 2025 Great Taste Awards (GTA), the 2024 […]
Reflections on the World Cheese Awards in Switzerland
Switzerland takes cheese seriously in a way that is charming and deeply enviable My judging team holding our Super Gold cheese Corra Linn from Errington Cheese. Pictured left to right: Fabricio Scalco, Josie Krogh, Rachel Juhl. The first thing I noticed stepping into the World Cheese Awards (WCA) was the smell. Warm, milky, and a […]
Culture’s 2025 Hot List: 20 Cheese People to Know
Each year, culture solicits nominations from the cheese community for our annual Hot List—a directory of cheese pros setting the industry ablaze with commitment to craft. We were fortunate to receive hundreds of submissions highlighting many deserving mongers, makers, and more. Of those submissions, we narrowed the Hot List down to 20 individuals actively changing […]
Culture’s 2025 Hot List: Anne-Marie Pietersma
This story is part of culture’s 2025 Hot List. Click here to learn more about the selection process and to see the entire list of recipients. Photo credit: Adam Schenberg Anne-Marie Pietersma, CCP Educator at Murray’s CheeseSensory Storyteller and Founder of Trust Your Taste Brooklyn, New York Anne-Marie Pietersma is a seasoned educator with over a decade […]
Culture’s 2025 Hot List: Joshua James Franklin
This story is part of culture’s 2025 Hot List. Click here to learn more about the selection process and to see the entire list of recipients. Joshua James Franklin, ACS CCP Proprietor of Eat LucioSales for Ripe Specialty Foods Richmond, Virginia Joshua James Franklin has been a cheesemonger for over a decade, earning his American Cheese Society […]
Culture’s 2025 Hot List: Jessica Galen
This story is part of culture’s 2025 Hot List. Click here to learn more about the selection process and to see the entire list of recipients. Photo credit: Kate S Jordan Jessica Galen, ACS CCP Owner and Head Cheesemonger at Bloomy Cheese & Provisions Dobbs Ferry, New York Jessica Galen discovered her passion for cheese while pursuing […]
Culture’s 2025 Hot List: Becky Collins Brooks
This story is part of culture’s 2025 Hot List. Click here to learn more about the selection process and to see the entire list of recipients. Photo credit: Sarah Farrell Becky Collins Brooks Writer and Co-Owner of Catskill Wagyu at Hilltop Farm Founder of Meeting of the MilkmaidsAccord, New York Years ago, when first dating, Becky Collins […]
Culture’s 2025 Hot List: Julia Fox-Birnbaum
This story is part of culture’s 2025 Hot List. Click here to learn more about the selection process and to see the entire list of recipients. Julia Fox-Birnbaum Founder of Philly Cheese SchoolPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania Julia Fox-Birnbaum has worked in the cheese industry since 2014, with a career spanning education, marketing, retail, and buying—including time as head buyer […]
Culture’s 2025 Hot List: Olivia Haver
This story is part of culture’s 2025 Hot List. Click here to learn more about the selection process and to see the entire list of recipients. Olivia Haver, ACS CCSE Affineur and Sensory Evaluator at von Trapp Farmstead Waitsfield, Vermont Olivia Haver is an award- winning affineur, sensory professional, and educator. Haver’s cheese career began over a […]
The 2025 Hot List: Madelyn Varela
This story is part of culture’s 2025 Hot List. Click here to learn more about the selection process and to see the entire list of recipients Madelyn Varela Cheesemonger and Founder of @cheezytalkwithmadelyn Cheese Department Manager at Heinen’s Grocery Store Cleveland, Ohio Madelyn Varela got her start in cheese at a goat dairy, where she first fell […]
