Fairfield, New Jersey – It’s been one hot summer for Schuman Cheese. The cheese maker added 15 domestic and international medals at industry competitions in recent weeks, highlighting the growing diversity and exceptional quality of its Italian and specialty cheeses.
Honorees at the American Cheese Society (ACS) Judging & Competition, International Cheese Awards (ICA) and Wisconsin State Fair (WI Fair) Dairy Contest spanned some of the latest innovations from Yellow Door Creamery, as well as a selection of traditional favorites marketed under Schuman’s flagship Cello brand and recently rebranded Montforte offering.
All of the winning cheeses hail from Wisconsin: Lake Country Dairy in Turtle Lake, which was recently honored as Plant of the Year by Dairy Foods magazine, and Montforte Creamery in Montfort.
Cello Mascarpone: This delicately sweet, rich flavor and smooth consistency is hand-crafted using fresh cows’ milk and sweet cream with no preservatives. The Rich & Creamy Mascarpone variety earned first place in WI Fair Open Class for Soft and Spreadable Cheese and silver in the Soft Cheese With or Without Rind category at ICA, while Thick & Smooth Mascarpone finished third in the ACS Fresh Unripened Cheeses category.
Cello Traditional Romano: This Romano starts with cow’s milk, but then added sheep rennet develops a slightly sharp, robust flavor more reminiscent of traditional Pecorino Romano. The distinguished flavor earned a first place award in the Open Class for Hard Cheese at WI Fair and third place in the ACS Italian Type Cheeses category.
Cello Italian-Style Fontal: The heritage of Italian cheese making – hand-crafting, brining and careful shelf-curing – gives this Italian-Style Fontal its smooth, creamy texture. It also earned this mild, slightly sweet cheese a gold medal in the Soft, Semi-Soft or Cream Cheese Without Additives category at ICA.
Cello Hand-Crafted Asiago: Aging for 10 months, a bit longer than most, results in a superior smooth and balanced flavor, proving that some things truly do grow better with age. Judges at ACS agreed, awarding a third place award in the Italian Type Cheeses category (a tie with Cello Traditional Romano).
Montforte Blue and Gorgonzola: Montforte began as a project of a small Wisconsin farmers’ union that transformed an historic ice cream factory into a small-batch, artisan operation. Today, every bite of a Montforte cheese showcases what judges consistently see: creamy, silky texture married to a robust flavor and aged to perfection. Montforte Blue won a silver medal in ICA’s Blue category, while Montforte Gorgonzola won third place in the Blue Veined Cheese category at WI Fair.
Yellow Door Creamery Hand-Rubbed Fontina: Hand-rubbed wheels of smooth and creamy Fontina create a visually interesting cheese, but, more importantly, the coarse blends add texture, dimension and flavor to enhance every bite. The Harissa variety (an exotic, smoky blend of chili, cumin and caraway seed) earned a gold medal in the ICA Any Cheese with Additives category, while the Tuscan variety, a more classic blend of Italian herbs and spices, took gold in the Soft & Semi-Soft category. New to the line is Mayan Cocoa & Coffee; this earthy and exotic blend of sweet, spicy Mayan spices combined with real cocoa and coffee won second place at WI Fair in the Flavored Semi-Soft Cheese category.
Yellow Door Creamery Alpine Collection: Inspired by the complex, extraordinary flavors of cheeses from the Alps, the Alpine Collection – which is hand-crafted in a Wisconsin creamery with milk from local family farms – puts an American accent on Alpine-style cheeses. Fruity flavors with hints of butter and hazelnut that are reminiscent of Abondance earned the Monteau variety a gold medal in ICA’s Washed Rind category. Altu, a Gruyere-style cheese with notes of fruit followed by an earthy and nutty finish, earned first place honors in the Smear Ripened Cheese class at WI Fair. Monteau finished second in the same category at the fair.
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For four generations, the Schuman family has earned a reputation for delivering world-class cheese solutions to customers around the globe. Whether importing the best cheeses from Europe, making award-winning cheeses in Wisconsin or crafting inspired new cheese products, Schuman Cheese has never strayed from its core purpose: to enhance everyday eating experiences with the highest quality cheese. Explore how a genuine passion for great cheese, along with investments in the best people and facilities, continue to honor founder Arthur Schuman’s legacy at SchumanCheese.com.
Source: Schuman Cheese
