A Conversation With Author, Nomad, and Fermentation Educator Trevor Warmedahl
Trevor Warmedahl, a cheesemaker and culture contributor known as the “Milk Trekker,” trots the globe visiting pastoral communities. His purpose? Investigating how milk is treated and transformed by indigenous microbes and the human touch.
It’s not a glamorous lifestyle, per se. In order to be the Milk Trekker, Warmedahl has to be comfortable navigating countries solo and communicating his intent to observe and understand niche dairy practices in spite of language barriers. He also travels light—and on a budget.
Cheese Trekking is as much a travelogue as it is a reflection on the links between terroir, cheesemaking, slow-food pathways, and heritage. We were lucky enough to catch up with Warmedahl, who was staying at a yurt in between his travels. Read on to learn about the experiences that shaped his writing, plus his views on the role of old-world food systems in a modern climate with high demand for all things quick and processed.
How to Age Cheese: Inside the World of Affineurs
On a cool fall morning in the Alps, an aromatic bouquet of fresh milk and damp stone drifts across the mountains. Deep inside a vaulted cellar, wheels of cheese—each weighing close to 80 pounds—are stacked like golden tomes on wide wooden planks. A man in a white coat pulls a wheel from the shelf and runs his hand along the rind, gently tapping the surface with a small hammer and listening for the soft thud that signals the right moisture within. Around him, thousands of cheeses rest quietly in low light, slowly transforming into something complex, elegant, and alive.
Why I Love Butter (and Kale Will Never Love Me Back)
I was dreaming my life had ended. I was walking along a beach, a large stick of cultured butter at my side, and the path along the sand marking my life was defined by our footsteps. My body had finally succumbed to the stresses of yo-yo dieting, spurts of working out, and extreme lifestyle changes—all driven by the belief that being healthy was better than being happy. After all the starts and stops, the good foods and the bad, in the end all I could think about was how hard I’d tried to be fit and eat right.
Why the Best Blue Cheeses Today Are Coming from Vermont
For nearly two decades, Bayley Hazen Blue has defined Jasper Hill Farm’s approach to blue cheese. Since its debut in 2003, the flagship blue-veined beauty has collected myriad accolades, including a spot in the top 14 at the 2024–2025 World Cheese Awards. In 2024, the creamery introduced two new variations: Withersbrook Blue, a square format aged in a cryovac pouch with a splash of local Eden Ciders Ice Cider; and Barnstorm Blue, a collaboration with the Murray’s Cheese Caves team, washed in malty ale from Focal Point Beer Co. Though the trio shares the same recipe, each develops its own personality.
Tariff Turmoil: Why America’s Trade Policy Rocked the Global Cheese Industry
For the specialty cheese industry, “Liberation Day” was anything but liberating. On April 2, 2025, President Donald Trump issued an executive order implementing a broad set of new tariffs, or taxes on products imported from other countries, dubbing the occasion “Liberation Day” in recognition of what he called the United States’ “declaration of economic independence.” The order announced unprecedented tariffs of 10 to 50 percent across a broad range of trading partners, including the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland—key suppliers of cheese to the US.
A Look at Canadian Cheesemaking Through the Years
At the 2025 American Cheese Society Annual Judging & Competition, a hush fell over the ballroom full of cheese professionals. Who would win Best of Show? It turned out that Quebec-based Fromagerie La Station’s raw-milk farmstead cheese won First—for the second year in a row—with Vermont’s Jasper Hill Farm placing Second Best of Show, and Ontario’s Stonetown Artisan Cheese taking Third. The results mirrored those from 2024, when the top three winners hailed from two Canadian makers and one American maker. So the new question on everyone’s mind is: What’s up with Canadian cheese?
CEO Sean Moore Ushers Jarlsberg Cheese into a New Age
At Norseland, Inc.—the Scandinavian company behind mild, nutty, and utterly snackable Jarlsberg—you’ll find Irishman Sean Moore at the helm.
Where to Find Some of the Most Unique Cheese in Appalachia
The winding roads of Appalachia’s Blue Ridge Mountains are characterized by jutting pine trees, sprouting wildflowers, and a hazy blue blanket of mist. The serenity and mystique surrounding these mountains have long drawn artisans, makers, and storytellers to take root in the foothills. That same allure brought cheesemaker and glassblower Victor Chiarizia to Fairview, North Carolina in 2005. A self-starter by nature, Chiarizia fell in love with the traditional methods of crafting cave-aged cheeses. In 2010, he took a backhoe to the side of the mountain on his property and carved his own cheese cave, launching Blue Ridge Mountain Creamery. Little did Chiarizia know, this cave—a testament to his creativity and grit—would soon withstand one of the most devastating natural disasters to ever hit North Carolina.
Making Cheese at Home Is More Popular Than Ever
Home cheesemaking, like sourdough bread baking, enjoyed a pandemic popularity surge when house-bound humans had a lot of time on their hands and the national cheese supply chain was experiencing many disruptions.
I Never Noticed my Grandmother’s Cheese Plates—Until They Became Mine
Pamela Vachon ruminates on a different kind of cheese plate. Growing up, cheese in my family’s Midwestern household usually came in plastic-wrapped blocks, cubes, or slices. The dairy appreciation was strong, but anything bordering on artisanal just didn’t cross my path until adulthood. Even conventional brie or gouda wasn’t anywhere on my radar. I was […]
