If you love cheese—and who doesn’t?—the place to be on September 14 and 15 was the International Bazaar at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. A $15 ticket could get you access to the Minnesota Cheese Festival, with more than 40 vendors ready to give out samples and talk cheese. The vendors were all from the Upper Midwest, most from Minnesota. If you missed it, don’t despair: another Minnesota Cheese Festival is planned for sometime in the spring.
The brains behind the Minnesota Cheese Festival, now in its second year, is Whitney McChane, a professional marketing and event coordinator.
“My husband and I really love cheese,” she said. “We went to a cheese festival in Wisconsin for our anniversary and I thought, ‘We have these incredible Minnesota cheeses. People know about Wisconsin’s cheese reputation, but our cheeses are just as good.’ That’s not just my opinion. We’ve got the national and international awards to prove it. Wisconsin had a lot of festivals and we didn’t have any, so I started organizing.”
Last year’s festival, she admits, was chaotic. Most of the 3,500 ticket holders arrived at the same time, early during one-day festival. Vendors were overwhelmed and the lines for samples were long. This year, McChane limited the attendance to 2,000 and stretched the event over two days. “I went after the serious foodies this year. We haven’t made any money yet,” she admitted, “but that’s not the point. It’s not about the money, it’s about the experience.” In addition to cheese, artisans brought samples of their butter, syrups, sausage, breads jams, soft drinks and beer for tasting.
To read the rest of the story, please go to: Twin Cities Daily Planet
