About Us!

ABOUT US!

Sorry to get all your hopes up but there is just Me! However I manage to do the work load of a family of oompa lumpas. Everyone always wants to know how a nice Jewish-Irish girl ended up in Chehalis, Washington making cheese. Let me tell you.

One night shortly after I dropped out of law school and started an Internet company with my newly found business partner and boyfriend I was up late reading a book. When I came to the part of the book where the grandmother was to take her granddaughter and teach her how to make the family cheese I put the book down and went straight to my computer. Incidentally the same one I am typing on now! So I looked up cheese making classes and found one in the Berkshires. I called in the morning and managed to albeit the 3 month wait since I called one second after a cancelation. The lady told me she was just going to give me the spot. That was exciting! I was pretty pumped up about going to the class. I had absolutely know idea what cheese making was about, but I also found an apiary and a very charming B&B and selected a Mustang GT to rent for the trip so who wouldn’t be excited????

After letting everyone in my small town of White Salmon, Washington know I was going to make cheese, I hopped on a plane, hopped off and away in my GT to go learn cheese.

On a side note I accidentally hit one of the most gigantic raccoons every to roam this earth, he was fine but the GT was a bit dented L It did nothing to dampen my enthusiasm. I loved The Cheese Queen and her class and asked a thousand plus one billion questions. I loved learning the bizarre and unique a process of cheese making. I mostly somewhat understood it, and made up the rest in my head (which I usually do) to fill in the blank spots. This is a brilliantly unique trait I have, with cheese making I really did not know a lot.

On my way back with honey and 25 year old aged white balsamic vinegar that I want more of to this day, I thought about the cheeses. I also talked incessantly to the very charming couple on their 45 wedding anniversary about cheese making. I remember liking that conversation greatly. Shortly thereafter I decided that I wanted to open a creamery and called the department of agriculture. This was a bit of a blow; the requirements for a facility and equipment are quite expensive. I thought I would call every single cheese maker in Oregon and Washington to see if I could rent a day in their facility. Low and behold someone said yes and Jacobs Creamery was born.

People often remark at what gumption I had to do such a thing, so I should mention that I had never stepped onto a farm before I negotiated rental terms for a licensed facility.

I actually had aspirations from about the time of 1^st grade to be a lawyer. Having family in Ireland I visited often and had lovely cups of tea in delicate china in castles with my grandmother and most loved aunt. I only mention this because no one else seems to think that it is hilarious that cows poke their tails out and pee out their butts! They say its not funny because they have seen it a lot, but I have seen it a lot now too and it still gets a smile out of me. I am not entirely sure it was all gumption; I had no idea what I was getting into. I think the correct term is naïve.

Fast forward 4 years and I still managed to possess some of that brilliant Irish luck, and landed myself a farm and cheese making facility in one swoop. Now I have plenty of space for my chickens to roam (I have lots of hens who eat cheese and whey!) and parking spaces for my trucks (I have a milk truck and a cargo van!) and of course aging rooms to cure the cheeses in. I also have a cheese shop on the farm, as part of the creamery and welcome you to visit!

I would like to thank Vodka, my fairy cheese monger, and my parents!

Since the way way very beginning of my cheese making career (as a cheese maker) I made cheese, and hung it. I loved the smell of the fresh cheese draining in cheese bags and loved the taste even more! So did ya'all so the fresh cheeses have been a large part of my product line up and also my life since they take a good amount of work to get them just right :) I just hung the first batch of fromage blanc this evening and now this place feels like home. It is a wonderful thing to have my own creamery now, and have it licensed to do everything I want!!!!

I am super duper excited to say that I have my fresh cheeses back. I will save you all the dramatic stories of how long it took me to get here (three times longer plus seven weeks more than expected), the truck driver with little to no clothes that delivered the wrong cheese press, the re wiring and pumps (I know the difference between 110 and 240!), All of it came to fruition at 9pm the other night when my most loved dairy inspectors came over to license my pasteurizer! Heilda! is fantastic she has a 275 gallon capacity and its sits low so yours truly doesn't even have to have a step to work in the vat! There were some last minute things like a 3k dollar air space heater that had to be created in two hours and a couple other things that required lots of money and deep thought but the bottom line is people that thanks to vodka, my fairy cheesemonger, Sedy Construction and my parents and a lot of hours in the creamery! this week we will have...
datatdatdtat dada tam!
Mozzarella! Creme Fraiche and two flavors of our very popular fromage blanc!! Yum Yum Yum
Gosh that felt good on my lips- they taste as good as they sound!!
We will also have butter, jarlsburg, cheddar, gouda and the most amazing feta ever!!!!

In two minus no weeks we will have blue cheese! And its super yummy in your tummy (also might put some hairs on your chest!)

I decided I love this industry not only because it allows me to be physical, artistic, scientific and amazing all in one day but because it so constantly challenging. I decided this morning that if I ever have a girl I am going to teach her how to do her own electrical and that she will know how to go shopping and hook up a compressor to a cheese press before she can drive!!!

Did you know there was an explosion at a cheese factory in France, all that was left was de brie!!
What did the cheese say after it got attacked by several blades?
It left grater!

I hope those jokes were not whey over your head!!

Have a lovely weekend!!!
Yours always
Cheese Czarina !!!!

Where o where has the Cheese Czarina gone???

My dear cheese eating shower singing butter on your toast reading cheese fans!
Since spring has sprung and its been a mere five months without a newsletter you might be wondering where o where the Cheese Czarina has gone!
The rumors that I was carrying around raw creme fraiche into restaurants in Normandy are actually true. I made myself at home in Ireland and France by turning our rental car into a cheese cave and meeting the best cheesemakers in Ireland and France.

Besides visiting family and cheesemakers in Ireland and eating my weight in cheese, butter and candy in France I have been hard at work at securing a new location for Jacobs Creamery. The trip to Europe was very educational and I learned a lot from seeing how other producers lay out their facilities from milk production and receiving to processing to aging and packaging. If any of you want to talk about cheese in Ireland I will fill you in on the best 'piece of mind' rental insurance and what to do when your sat map re-reoutes you through an irrigation canal!!! I had not been back to Ireland for many years, I left when I was a young one. It was fantatsic to see all my lovely family members over there and experience the country as a cheese maker. Coming back I had plenty to do!

So basically over the winter we got a makeover and are bigger! We now have a new facility and are awaiting various pieces of equipment to bring us back to our full production capacity and product line. As many of you have been heartbroken to notice we do not have all of our fresh cheeses and dairy, but we do have a tastey new aged product line. We will be having the fresh cheeses back when our new vat pasteurizer arrives. Last month we got our new facility licensed and last week our smaller vat arrived allowing us to start production of the aged cheeses!!! Which is fantatic news because its been awhile since these arms have felt the sily smooth and bouncy texture of curds!
It has been a lot of work but I am finally getting excited seeing that it will all work! On the property is 38 acres divided by a stream- I will be taking over the farm house making it the first cheese processing facility where I will also live! No commuting! At an 1.15 min from Portland and a little further to Seattle its a great location. The small vineyard means that I will be attempting my hand at wine making this year and grape jelly and the small orchard will hopefully produce some nice fruit that I will make into jam for some fall cheese pairings! Boooyaaaa It really is a dream come true for me :)

Hopefully you have discovered that we are selling at the PSU farmers market and next weekend we will start the King market which we will be in every Sunday.
We also had a booth at the Beer and Wine Festival in Portland this weekend and hoped you enjoyed some of the cheese bites we had for tasting. The blue cheese crumbles and honey butter was such a HUGE hit we will be adding the flavor to our butter line! Its the perfect mix of sweet and savory and the european style butter is the perfect base for complimenting those flavors. Our gouda has been our number one seller this spring, it has a beautiful creamy texture with a nutty finish. It was only surpassed this weekend by the debut of our Jarlsburg which has been aged for eight months and seems to be something that no one can refuse!!! I just enjoyed some on my matzo this fine easter morning! The Jarlsburg is the best cheese I have ever made and will be submitted to some competitions because I think it might actually have a chance at a medal (its that good)!!!!!!!!!!!!

We are trying to become a little classier and what better to help with that than a cheese class right??
May 15 at 5pm at the Silverton Grange is our first class this year, please send me an email to sign up the class is $40 and will cover a variety of cheeses and methods.

For those of you who love to experience Spring at the Tulip festival you will be able to find a Jacobs Creamery booth at the Tulip Wine Down in Woodburn Sat and Sunday 12-8
http://tulipwinedown.com/default.aspx
The above link has information about the massive tulip farm that is open to visitors for this weekend before it closes and also the wine, music, food and of corse cheese event along side it!!!!

Since its Easter I thought I would conclude with some cheesy jokes!!!

Why did the Easter egg hide? - because he was a little chicken!!!!

What’s long and stylish and full of cats? The Easter Purrade!

What did the Easter egg say to the boiling water?- Its gonna take a while to get me hard, I just got laid by a chick!

OOh yeah I almost forgot! Our new flavored butter made its debut this last weekend at the wine and beer festival in Portland. Our european style cultured butter with blue cheese crumbles and honey! It was amazing at what a perfect pairing it is the blue cheese makes the butter salty and savory and the honey gives it a little sweet kick!
We have a small amount for next weekend!

Until then have a lovely week!
Yours truely,

Your very own terribly cheesy
Cheese Czarina!!!!

OOh its been three weeks!

oooHH It's been three weeks since you looked at me!
Five days since I laughed at you saying
Get some pudding and come back and see me!
Three days since your withdrawal hell
Like harrison Ford I am getting frantic!
Yesterday you'd dreamed of me!
But its still one day till you'll say 'I am happy" (because youll be able to shop at the Hillsdale farmers market!)

How can I help if the chickens think your funny when you look sad
I am trying hard not to smile at the cheese I have
Can't understand what I mean? Well you soon will!

(The Farmers Market is this Sunday!!!)

I like vanilla because its the finest of the flavors
Cause its so dangerous you'll have to sign a waiver
Its all about fresh flowers and cheese
smoked salmon and meat
Don't fill up your basket because Sun Gold Farm has some beans!

Its been three weeks since you looked at me
But only one more day till you can say 'I am happy'


Hello ya'all
Happy New Year to everyone! I hope that this next year is full of wheels of brie and wedges of blue, bowls of cereal with fresh farm milk and scrambled eggs for breakfast, sips of wine savored with wedges of cheese from Jacobs Creamery and many cheesy memories for everyone!

This Sunday we will be at the Hillsdale farmers market with a variety of our aged cheeses, butter and a bountiful amount of our fresh farm eggs! I have missed ya'all greatly so please come by and say hi! I will be there in any weather from 10-2pm! Its the first market of the year people!

Until then
Your very own 'cant write or sing a tune'
Cheese Czarina!

Gouda Times Novemeber Issue

There have been many mornings lately when I wake up and the moon is still out and the stars twinkle brightly in the sky- mostly in a jesting way saying 'you look tired you should really be in bed while we are still here'. I look out where I think the pasture should be as I back my truck up and over the fence (whoopsy) and admire the thick fog that has hindered me to the state of an old blind man.
Even in the dark and thick fog I still have a huge smile on my face- thankful that I am a cheesemaker.

As Thanksgiving approaches I look back on what has encompassed the season.
I think of my life in spans of seasons and large blocks of times- and sometimes even think of my life as one week after the other.
**When I do this I seem to break out into a choreographed dance (that I made up and sing tirelessly off key)***

I don't care if Mondays blue
Tuesday's great and Wednesday too
Thursday I don't care about you
Its Gouda that I love!

Cheddar you can fall apart!
Swiss and Chevre break my heart
Oh-Tomme doesn't even start
It's Gouda that I love

Washed rind cheeses can wait and the Jarlsburg is ready too late!
But Gouda just never seems to hesitate

I don't care if my fromage blanc is black
Too much butter and yogurt- HEART ATTACK!
Cheddar - no one seems to care about you!
Its Gouda that I love!

Cultured up to the eyes- its a wonderful surprise to
see your curds and your spirits rise
I am just smiling at the sound, a sleek cheese mold spinning round and round
Always take a big bite-its such a gorgeous site
to see the finished cheese in the middle of the night!
You can never get enough
Its Gouda and all my cheeses that I love!

WWWhhhooo hooooooooooo!!! curtsy bow curtsy bow curtsy!

We are very close to one of the most exciting holidays of the year. A special time which almost everyone wants to make special with bountiful amounts of wine, cheese, wine cheese and turkey and stuffing followed by a game of WII and more cheese and wine and lots of turkey!! Right?

Having everyone circle around Tom the Turkey is a once a year special event and I would like to assure you that Jacobs Creamery will have some very special delicacies including duck eggs and truffle butter and of course eggnog pudding that will be must haves on your shopping list along with our ready to go cheese plate.

On behalf of Jacobs Creamery I would like to cordially invite you to attend the PSU holiday market and the Hollywood holiday market on Saturday 11/20 as well as the Hillsdale holiday farmers market on the Sunday before thanksgiving.

We are currently taking orders for any products that you would like to specially reserve for your holiday table. We will be churning a holiday batch of butter and can custom package any amount of butter, creme fraiche and cut and wrap any of our aged cheese to order.
We will also be able to consult on arranging a cheese plate to fit your party size as well as palate!

Thanksgiving is a wonderful time of year one which requires a huge amount of preparation for everyone including your favorite cheese maker (who still seems to have some dislocated ribs but is hardly complaining about it anymore).
I am so very thankful to each and every one of you that supports me and my business. I wish for you a lovely holiday as you consider what you are thankful for in your life.

Hopefully your not thinking that I will ramble on till the cows come home because most of what I say is tongue and cheek but you should keep in mind that 'variety is the spice of life' and the more cheese you eat the better things are~ Remember you are what you eat so if you want to be a little cheesy eat more cheese!
Please remember to not cry over spilled milk and to not put all your eggs in one basket in case they should break while at the market!

Have a lovely week and I look forward to seeing you soon!
Yours always
Cheese Czarina
tirelessly producing varieties of fresh and aged cheeses for your happy consumption!

I could not wait for success so I went ahead without it- JW

Last weekend was a BIG weekend for cheese in the NW. Thousands of people flocked to Seattle for Cheese-a-Topia! (sounds like heaven don't you think?) a huge conference all about cheese!

The biggest deal being -of course- was the much awaited Festival of Cheeses where all the winners from the 1462 cheese entries were displayed and tasted! Wowzers! Its basically like the academy awards but for cheese!
I really wished I could have been there to meet other cheese makers from all over the country and to taste the winners.
On saturday evening I got a call from Marc Bates and his lovely wife Janice telling me that my creme fraiche was awarded a ribbon!!!!! Me? OMG!! Me? Seriously????
Followed only by a txt from Becky telling me the same followed by another 'anonymous' txt telling me congrats on my creme fraiche win I always knew you could do it!!! Yippeee right?

I had a moment of extreme joy that was soon followed by a very depressed emotion (tears) brought only on by the fact that my ricotta was totally and udderly neglected. I might have been the only cheese maker to have cried after winning her very first ribbon but cry indeed I did, because I had so wanted my ricotta to win.
Perhaps it was just extreme stress and massive sleep deprivation?
I am feeling much better about it now and feel proud to be ranked up there against two other companies (Bellweather Farms and Vermont Butter and Cheese Co.) who I greatly admire. Both companies have amazing cheesemakers and a wonderful array of products. There is always next year for the ricotta :)

This week we have copious amounts of the award winning creme fraiche! Our new version of the age old farmers cheese and of course fresh churned butter!
Host a party in your mouth and try all three at once!
The farmers cheese is wonderful with tomatoes and absorbs a vinaigrette nicely for a salad.

This week you can find our products at PSU and Hollywood on Saturday the King market and Hillsdale on Sunday and Monday Pioneer Sq, Tuesday (me) at Cannon Beach (as long as there are no Tsunami warnings) and Hood River and the NW 23rd market on Thursday.
If you cannot make it to any of these markets you can find us at Sheridan Fruit company! They are now carrying the feta, butter, ricotta and fromage blanc!!


Until next time! (hope your udderly fabulous in the mean time)
Yours always
Cheese Czarina!

‎"I wanted a perfect ending. Now I've learned, the hard way, that some poems don't rhyme, and some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what's going to happen next."
- Gilda Radner

Lady Gouda and Nerdy Curdy in the News!

Ladies and Gentleman I have an announcement!
I just finished making the cheeses and butters that are now awaiting Judgment day in Seattle for the 2010 American Cheese Society annual cheese competition! OMG my cheeses will be competing against all the Big Guys throughout North America. I was planning on sort of pretending/ignoring the fact that I have entered four of my favorite products into the competition this year because I thought that I couldn't bare to have so many people know, but then I changed my mind, as I am apt to do (because I am whimsical and bc I am certain my chances of winning are higher if I submit my cheese.)

Jacobs Creamery certainly would not be here today if it wasn't for my tenacious spirit and along with my tenacity is a whole lot of hard work (and milk of course)! I don't give up easily so if it so happens that I am not an award winning blue ribbon holding Cheese Czarina by the end of the month than those Judges have another thing coming. I will continue to submit my cheeses until they realize what wonderful texture, flavor and charisma they have! SO there!
The competition is part of a conference Cheese-a-Topia! which is an event entirely dedicated to cheese and everything that surrounds it.
Cheese-o-philes come from all over the country and world to participate and I am deeply saddened that I will be unable to go. However a select someone has my mobile number and I will be called during the award ceremony (with the news!).

I am also deeply saddened by the fact that my most wonderful Twins (Ashley and Jacque) will soon be departing-good luck at school girls (you will be missed). I must say that I think that I have the most wonderful cheese slinging crew ever! Thankfully Vanae is still with us although she too will soon be departing as she will soon have a very new member of her family that will need her attention :) Added to the dairy babe ensemble is Emma who always has a lot to say and is starting to develop some cooler hauling muscles and Becky! Becky has volunteered for the American Cheese Society in Seattle and will likely be cutting all the cheeses for the competition! I feel so very lucky to have such wonderful ladies to work with.


New this week is cheddar cheese curds! Since our production of cheddar is successfully underway I have pulled out some of the hand milled curds for your enjoyment. So far we have the Nerdy Curdy original and Hhhhhot n Spicey! (which is somewhere between you feeling like you need to strip off all your clothes and run into the Willamette river and pure fiery enjoyment for your mouth with a smoked edge) and the Salt n Pepper which has some black and white cracked pepper! They are very very very skweaky and fun to eat.
For those of you waiting in anticipation for our other new cheese please remember Lady Gouda is maturing and will make her first live appearance in the fall.

Sadly this week Madam Honey Greek and Senior Fromage Blanc ran away together and will not be appearing at the JC booths. Hopefully they will be back the following week.

All right that is all folks! Please eat more dairy and farm fresh eggs (you know what happens when you eat eggs from the store now) and come try some of our Nerdy Curdies this week!

Tatata
Yours respectfully,
Cheese Czarina