Metropolitan Market Cheesemonger's Make Cheese at Sartori!

A big supporter of the Sartori cheeses, we were first to market with many of their cheeses including the very popular Rosemary Asiago. Jim Sartori had the chance to visit our stores during the American Cheese Society (ACS) Conference and was blown away by depth of product knowledge and merchandising at our stores.

Because of this great support for the Sartori cheeses, they opened their doors to us. We are the first retail in this cheese factory's 70+ year history to be allowed inside one of their cheese factories. The cheese plant is located in Antigo, Wisconsin and happens to be the most decorated cheese factory in US history.

This past January, in freezing temperatures, Metropolitan Market Cheesemongers got to make cheese that we will be selling during FLOC "For the Love of Cheese Festival" in October, as it takes 9 months to age and cure the cheeses. We got to fill the forms with fresh warm salty curd and press the Parmesan and hand-rub rosemary and olive oil on the aging Asiago. It was an amazing experience we'll not soon forget.

Charles & Rose Ann Finkel founders of The Pike Brewing Company

Created in Seattle, Washington

The Pike Brewing Company was founded in 1989 by Charles & Rose Ann Finkel. Charles being the craft beer pioneer he is, set forth his enthusiasm of good beer by educating the American public about good quality, hand-crafted, local beer. Both Charles & Rose had an integral part in the 'craft beer' explosion. Pike Brewing Company not only serves superior beer, but features local, sustainable, and seasonal pub grub as well.

Award Winners from American Cheese Society (ACS)

ACS 1ST PLACE AWARDS 2011

1ST-Sartori Parmesan

1ST-Sartori Reserve Black Pepper BellaVitano

ACS 1ST PLACE AWARDS 2010

1st-Sartori Reserve BellaVitano Gold

1st-Sartori Reserve Pastorale Blend

1st-Sartori Asiago

1st-Sartori Reserve Balsamic Bellavitano

Daphne Zepos From the Essex Street Cheese Company

About the Cheese School

Her company imports four hand-selected cheeses from Europe: a French Comté, an Italian Parmigiano-Reggiano and two Dutch aged Goudas. Daphne consults with cheese shops and teaches several classes each month for consumer and professional audiences and acts as a judge in cheese competitions in the US and in Europe. She is now the proud owner of the San Francisco Cheese School.

The Cheese School of San Francisco is the only independent institution of its kind in the nation dedicated entirely to helping people maximize their enjoyment and appreciation of cheese through education and tasting events, both structured and informal.

Founded in 2006 by Sara Vivenzio, The Cheese School of San Francisco and its roster of expert instructors offer regularly scheduled classes as well as corporate events and private parties, held either at its classroom facility in San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood or at the client site.

The Cheese School is committed to building a complete curriculum, with classes and tasting events that can be taken alone or in combination to satisfy food lovers of all types, from the merely curious, to the serious cheese enthusiast, to the food service professional.

Cheesemonger and Author Sasha Davies

Cheese By Hand

Cheese by Hand is a project conceptualized by Michael Claypool (husband) and Sasha Davis, as they explore the landscape of artisan (hand-made) cheesemaking in the United States. Their goal was to capture the experience of cheesemakers around the country, in their own voices, and share them with consumers and cheese fans everywhere. They hoped that this will promote understanding and support for the products themselves and also the variety of farms that make up our country's agricultural system.

In April of 2006 they embarked on a cross-country tour, visiting cheesemakers of all sizes and herd types, interviewing them about their craft and their lives. Their aim was to spend at least two days at each farm, asking questions and pitching in wherever they could. They posted blogs to their website regularly with photos and even some small audio clips to give a full sense of the places they visited.

The Guide to West Coast Cheese - The long-awaited guide to West Coast Cheese is on the market! Over 300 cheeses and 92 producers are introduced in this info-packed reference guide. Not to mention the selection of pictures that feature adorable dairy animals, beautiful cheeses, and grinning cheesemakers.

Kurtwood Farms

Cheese By Hand

The cheese of Kurtwood Farms is farmstead cheese, meaning that it is made on the farm from the milk produced on this farm. The milk that goes into the cheeses all comes from the cows that live on this farm. No milk is brought in from any other source. All of the cheeses are made by hand, wrapped by hand and delivered personally. Presently he sells one single cheese: Dinah's Cheese. It is an 8 ounce, fresh, cows' milk, bloomy rind cheese. A new one is in the making, so stay tuned.