![]() The Cellars is now the final stop for cheeses coming from six different creameries. Instead of sending hundreds of small boxes through the post, refrigerated trucks now pick up pallets of cheese destined for regional and national distributors. By pooling these efforts, farmstead producers could spend more time focusing on the true drivers of cheese quality: milk production and cheesemaking. Ripening work for natural-rind cheeses takes up more than 70% of the labor for a batch of cheese, over its lifetime. With Cabot's blessing, Andy and Mateo shopped the new clothbound cheddar around to their direct accounts - shops and chefs who were used to dealing with fussy, high-maintenance cheeses. The basement of the farmhouse creamery was nearing capacity, and it was hard to imagine growing the inventory needed to supply Cabot's core customers. The result was delicious, but a bit of a conundrum. The result was Cabot Clothbound Cheddar.Īt first, it was just a few racks of cheese, which were dutifully monitored and turned for a yearlong cycle of aging. The Kehlers were nearby, hungry to grow their business, and most importantly had a temperature and humidity-controlled space designed to grow natural rinds. What Cabot lacked was an aging space dedicated to cultivating natural rinds - their warehouses were all focused on keeping surface mold away from cheese. Technically, and for a number of styles, Cabot made some of the best cheese in the country, and they had awards to show for it. They saw British bandaged cheddars popping up on new European-style service counters and on the country's best restaurant menus. Just as the bleak reality of their new life was setting in, they received an interesting phone call from their neighbors up the road at Cabot Creamery.Ĭabot had noticed the early acclaim the Kehlers earned for their fancy little cheeses while watching the American Artisan Cheese movement pick up steam. Plus there was the work of packing little boxes with individual orders for dozens of individual shops and restaurants - and then chasing down all the invoices weeks later. ![]() Cows needed to be pastured and milked every day, and cheeses had to be made and tended to in ripening every day. They didn't have a bulk tank or relief milker in the early days. All in all, it took about 5 years of building structures and skills before they sent their first cheeses to market in 2003. They worked on the pasture and made places for their young families to live. And because the highest value cheeses in the market were imported, European styles, they also created a cave aging space beneath for cultivating natural rinds. The concept was called value-added agriculture: the practice of transforming a raw material like milk into something more valuable before it leaves the farm.Īs the old barn got fixed up, they built a creamery next door. They set out to create a model for small-scale dairy farming that could offer more opportunities for Vermont's working landscape. Fruit mostarda and crusty bread make nice accompaniments.So from the start, Andy and Mateo realized their farm would have to be different. Pair with oaked white wine, or barrel-aged sour beer. If the bark has fused with a more loosened paste, then the best approach is to leave the bark intact and spoon out portions from the top. When a bit younger, the bark can be peeled away for sliced portioning. PAIRING AND SERVICE - Harbison is a great excuse to gather a few friends and scoop into a decadent treat. Harbison is woodsy and sweet, balanced with lemon, mustard, and vegetal flavors. ![]() The spoonable texture begins to develop in our vaults, though the paste continues to soften on the way to market. Young cheeses are wrapped in strips of spruce cambium, the tree's inner bark layer, harvested from the woodlands of Jasper Hill. ![]() SENSORY NOTES - Harbison is a soft-ripened cheese with a rustic, bloomy rind. Harbison's contribution with this cheese. Along with breathtaking views, traditions and people are part of what makes Vermont's working landscape special we're proud to honor Ms. HARBISON is named for Anne Harbison, affectionately known as the grandmother of Greensboro. Ingredients: Pasteurized cow's milk, rennet, salt, cultures, enzymes ![]()
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