Ask the Monger: How Do I Become A Cheesemonger?
How does one become a cheesemonger? I began my career as a cheesemaker in rural West Pawlet, Vermont. Due to the distance between the farm and our retail customers in NYC, a tremendous information gap existed. Is the cheese raw or pasteurized? Jersey milk or Ayrshire? From the Northeast Kingdom or the Slate Valley? I wanted to close that gap and tell […]
Ask the Monger: How Do I Learn to Taste Cheese Like An Expert?
How can I learn to taste cheese the way the experts do? Tasting doesn’t have to be formal or prescriptive—cheese is the great democratizer, that incredible distillation of dairy that anyone with taste buds (and lactose tolerance) can enjoy. The rules are simple: Taste often and taste deliberately. Start a journal or photo log of cheeses you taste and record your observations. While […]
Rory Stamp of Dedalus Wine Shop Wins the Cheesemonger Invitational
Last Sunday, Rory Stamp of Dedalus Wine Shop in Vermont was crowned champion at the Cheesemonger Invitational in San Francisco. This was Stamp’s second time competing, after placing fourth at the last Invitational this past summer in New York. “I put so much into this, but never really expected this outcome,” says Stamp, “it feels pretty […]
