Central Point, OR – Oregon-inspired culinary events, including a farmer’s market-style artisan food, beer, cider and wine festival, will kick off with the Meet the Cheesemakers and Winemakers Dinner. The Oregon Cheese Festival will be open to the public Saturday, March 18th & Sunday March 19th from 11:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. at Rogue Creamery, 311 North Front St. (Hwy. 99), Central Point, OR. Held under 2 large heated tents, 15,000 sq. ft. of space, at Rogue Creamery's Central Point facility, the thirteenth annual festival invites guests to shake hands with cheesemakers & other artisans. There will be baby cows on site to showcase the beginnings of great milk producers! Activities will also be provided for children including games, activity sheets, coloring, face painting and more.
At the festival thousands of visitors will sample cow, goat and sheep cheese from Oregon creameries, including: Pholia Farm, Ancient Heritage Dairy, Oregon State University, Ochoa’s Queseria, Tillamook County Creamery, Willamette Valley Cheese Co., Oak Leaf Creamery, Briar Rose Creamery, La Mariposa, Fraga Farmstead Creamery, Goldin Artisan Goat Cheese, Crushpad Creamery, By George Farm, Face Rock Creamery, Portland Creamery, Rogue Creamery, and many others.
Southern Oregon & other local culinary artisans and beverage providers who are expected to participate include: Lillie Belle Farms, Gary West Meats, Applegate Valley Artisan Breads, Ledger David Cellars, Jaxon Vineyards, South Stage Cellars, Serra Vineyards, Caprice Vineyards, EdenVale Winery, RoxyAnn Winery, La Brasseur Vineyard, 30 Brix Winery, Willamette Valley Vineyards, Wandering Aengus Ciders, Hot Lips Soda, Clear Creek Distillery, Bend Distillery, Wild River Brewing, Sierra Nevada Brewing and Rogue Ales.
A $15 entry fee includes tastings and demonstrations; tickets purchased at the door will be $20. Entry tickets can be purchased in advance at http://oregoncheesefestival.com. In addition, a $10 wine, cider, beer and spirit tasting fee is available and includes a commemorative glass with the Oregon Cheese Guild logo. "The farmer's market format will present an interactive experience between makers and visitors, giving everyone an opportunity to talk about the product, the process and learn each individual cheesemaker's story," says David Gremmels, President of Rogue Creamery. "It's a way to truly be connected with the source of the cheese being presented.”
Friday, March 17th – Dinner
To commence the festival, a sumptuous meal introducing guests to participating guild cheesemakers will be held Friday night at the Inn at the Commons in Medford, OR on March 17th from 6:00 P.M. – 9:00 P.M. The dinner is held for the benefit of the non-profit 501(c)(6) Oregon Cheesemakers Guild. Each course will spotlight a cheese made by one of the festival's artisans, paired with a local wine, beer or cider. Tickets available for purchase at http://oregoncheesefestival.com.
We are excited to announce our Special Guest for the dinner and festival! Brian Keyser is the founder of Casellula Cheese & Wine Café, a tiny restaurant with a huge cheese selection. He opened the restaurant in New York City in 2007 and Casellula at Alphabet City in Pittsburgh in 2016. Together with Chef Leigh Friend he is the co-author of Composing the Cheese Plate, a book of easy recipes and creative ideas for fun and inventive cheese plates (Running Press, 2016). Brian is a Co- Chair of the 2017 (ACS) American Cheese Society Annual Conference and Competition in Denver, Chair of the ACS Scholarship Committee, and a board member of the American Cheese Education Foundation.
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The festival would not be possible without the generous support of the City of Central Point, the Oregon Dairy and Nutrition Council, Wandering Aengus Ciderworks, Rogue Ales, Oregon Department of Agriculture, Face Rock Creamery, Oregon Economic & Community Development Department, Culture Magazine, Travel Medford, Cheese Connoisseur Magazine, Umpqua Bank, Rogue Credit Union, and the members of the Oregon Cheese Guild.
For more information, visit www.oregoncheeseguild.org or www.roguecreamery.com
Source: Rogue Creamery
