It was an evening of firsts at the 2014 Cheesemonger Invitational in NYC last night — not only did someone from New York claim first place for the first time ever, but Emily Acosta of Eataly NYC is also the first woman to win the CMI! Congrats to Emily from all of us here at culture! Oh, and she sang a song about pecorino to commemorate her victory — to the tune of Let It Go, no less. Pretty awesome, huh?
The two runners-up were both Southern mongers: Nadjeeb Chouaf of Charlottesville, Virginia’s Flora Artisanal Cheese secured second place, and James Gentry of New Orleans’ St. James Cheese Company came in third.
We were also incredibly proud to see cheesemonger Jordan Edwards of Chicago’s Pastoral doing his thing at the CMI. Jordan was the winner of our Send Your Monger Packing competition, chosen by you, our readers, to receive an all-expenses-paid trip to the CMI. His “perfect bite,” a CMI-worthy cheese pairing, was Neal’s Yard Dairy Stichleton with English oatcake, port jellybean, and pistachio. Yum!
Cheesemonger Jordan Edwards, far right
The Cheesemonger Invitational is an event that occurs in junction with the Specialty Food Association’s Fancy Food Show — which is still happening over the next few days, so be sure to follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook to find out about hot new products and cheeses!
Rebecca Haley-Park
Rebecca Haley-Park is culture's former editor and resident stinky cheese cheerleader. A native New Englander, she holds a BFA in creative writing from University of Maine at Farmington.
