Two Windham County cheese producers were among seven Vermont cheesemakers who took home 19 medals at the World Cheese Awards held in Bergamo, Italy.
Parish Hill Creamery of West Westminster won two bronze awards for the farm's Humble and Idyll cheeses, respectively.
Grafton Village Cheese Company of Grafton collaborated with Crown Finish Caves of Brooklyn to produce Bismark and Barnburner, both cheeses that won bronze awards.
Other state cheese companies winning awards included Cellars at Jasper Hill Farm in Greensboro; Cabot Creamery Cooperative in Cabot; Spring Brook Farm in Reading; von Trapp Farmstead in Waitsfield; and Vermont Creamery, in collaboration with Wegman's Markets.
“It's wonderful to see Vermont cheesemakers getting the respect they deserve on the world cheese stage,” said Vermont Cheese Council Executive Director Tom Bivins.
“The importance of the dairy and cheese industry to Vermont agriculture is significant socially and culturally, as well as enhancing our sense of place and supporting agriculture economies in their communities,” he added, calling the $1-billion-per-year cheese industry “an economic engine” for the state.
The Guild of Fine Food in the UK is one of the most prestigious of the world food guilds and manages the World Cheese Awards, along with Great Taste, a specialty food awards, and Shop of the Year 2020. Over 260 judges from around the world were on hand to judge 3,804 cheeses from 42 countries for this competition. Judging took place in a single day. American cheeses won 126 medals in numerous categories across all milk types.
For a comprehensive list of the 2019 World Cheese Award winners, visit gff.co.uk/awards/worldcheeseawards.
According to the Vermont Cheese Council, the state boasts more state-inspected cheese companies per capita than any other state in the nation: close to 1 cheesemaker for 13,000 people.
Currently, 54 members of the Vermont Cheese Council are making more than 225 varieties of cheese. Cheesemakers range in size from producers for local farmers' markets to producers selling in regional, national, and international markets.
For more information, call 802-451-8564 or visit the Vermont Cheese Council website at vtcheese.com.