9 Cheese Experiences You Need to Have in Wisconsin
People call Wisconsinites cheese-obsessed, but we don’t really think about it like that. For us, easy access to literally the best cheeses in the country — and the world — is a given, and often something we take for granted. But once you’ve lived here and then go somewhere else, it’s like cheese detox. You not only miss it, but you realize how lucky you were to live in this dairy product wonderland. In fact, the siren song of squeaky cheese curds might even be the thing that draws you back home.
Want to experience cheese like a Wisconsinite? From award-winning cheese in our gas stations to hours-old curds at our grocery store, here are just a few of the ways that you can indulge in cheese like a true Wisconsin native.
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1. Indulge in the best of the best.
At the most recent US Cheese Championship held in Green Bay, Wisconsin-made cheeses took home 168 of 348 awards presented at the competition in March, including first- and second-runner up overall. State-made cheese swept 26 of 116 categories. Fifty-one different Wisconsin cheese-makers won awards and 12 different companies took five or more awards.
In the 32 years that the World Cheese Championship has been held (every two years starting in 1958), the only US cheeses that have won have been from Wisconsin. Eleven world champions have been made here in the state, most recently Emmi Roth’s Grand Cru Surchoix won the title in 2016.
See more: Wisconsin Cheese is Sliced to Perfection
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Marieke Gouda Premium and Marieke Gouda Overjarige were the first and second runner up, respectively, at the US Cheese Championship in March. The Thorp-based cheesemaker also won the Grand Champion title in 2013 and second-runner up in 2017.
Crave Brothers in Waterloo won both first and second place for their fresh mozzarella and had the second-place white cheddar curds. Carr Valley’s Cave Aged Marisa, Gran Canaria and Marisa all won best in class while eight other cheeses placed second or third.
2. Take a cheese factory tour.
Ok, we say tour, but honestly, going to the factory is about sampling some of the freshest cheese you’ve ever laid your hands on. If you head out to Carr Valley in La Valle, about an hour west of Madison, early in the morning, you’ll have the best chance of seeing the cheesemakers in action. This company has been making cheese since 1902, and they make more than 50 different types of cheeses. The most decorated cheese company in the U.S, Carr Valley’s Certified Master Cheesemaker has won more top national and international awards than any other cheesemaker in North America.
See more: Why Wisconsin is the Perfect Place for Cheese Lovers
3. Make your own cheesehead.
We here in Wisconsin, we don’t take ourselves too seriously. When Chicagoans started calling us “cheeseheads,” they meant it in a derogatory manner. Instead, we embraced it and made it our own. The giant foam cheese hats are sort of an international symbol of Wisconsinites at this point. The factory that makes them has a wide variety of foam cheese products, and you can visit their factory in Milwaukee for a tour and even make your very own foam cheese product! Dreams do come true.
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The now-ubiquitous symbol of our state started as a single hat carved from the foam inside a couch cushion back in the mid-90s. Since then, the company has created a whole line of cheesy foam products, from koozies to Christmas tree toppers. On their “Holey cow” tour, you get the full factory tour and history experience, and at the end, you’ll get to make your very foamy cheese creation.
4. Grab some Wisconsin cheese for the road.
Getting the full Wisconsin cheese experience is hungry work. You’ll find yourself driving all over the state and when you do, you’ll need some road trip snacks. Any full-sized interstate-adjacent gas station in Wisconsin will have at least a small display of Wisconsin cheese. Some offer up cheese and sausage snack packs. Others have fresh cheese curds. No matter what you find, you can bet that the cheese we Wisconsinites find in our gas stations is better than what most people find at their city’s best grocery stores.
Case in point? On the stretch of I-94 that goes from Madison up to the Twin Cities, nearly every interstate exit features a cheese factory or outlet shop. Before leaving town, we recommend stopping in at Madison’s Fromagination for some local, artisan cheese. Up the road is Tomah, and the Humbird Cheese store is right off the exit ramp and is the perfect place to stop for a road trip snack. They sell more than 100 tons of Wisconsin cheese from more than 25 different makers every year. It’s the perfect place to stop for a snack, though perusing the selection here will probably take longer than your standard pit stop. The most difficult part is deciding between the 5-, 10- and 12-year aged cheddar.
5. Take home a “cheese orphan.”
Though they probably didn’t invent the idea, the folks at West Allis Cheese Shoppe (with locations in the Milwaukee Public Market and in West Allis, just west of Milwaukee) have a bin near their check out that holds what they call “cheese orphans.” These are the ends of blocks or rounds that are packaged up and sold in small amounts — usually an ounce or two.
Peruse the orphans and take this opportunity to try stuff you’ve never thought to try before. It’s a great way to sample new things or to try something that’s normally beyond your cheese budget. The $7 orphan of 10-year aged cheddar is my best cheese orphan find, but really, you can never go wrong. Grab a box of crackers, a summer sausage and your orphans – that makes for a pretty spectacular meal for a football Saturday or Sunday.
6. Spend a day (or three) in Wisconsin cheese country.
In south-central Wisconsin, Green County — and its county seat, Monroe — are the epicenter of Wisconsin cheese, though it’s not a stretch to think this might be the center of all cheesemaking in the US. Sometimes known as the “Gateway to Cheese Country” or the “Cheese Capital of the US,” this area was once home to hundreds of small cheese factories. Though that number has shrunk down to the dozens now, there are still plenty of cheesemakers to visit and sample here, including award-winning Emmi Roth.
Monroe is also home to the National Historic Cheesemaking Center, where you can learn about hundreds of years of Wisconsin cheesemaking history and tour a restored cheese factory before heading into town to Baumgartner’s, Wisconsin’s oldest cheese store where they serve up some of the most unique and delicious cheese sandwiches you can dream, including a Limburger option that comes with a breath mint.
Chalet Cheese Cooperative in Monroe is the only cheesemaker in America producing Limburger and it’s been that way for nearly 50 years. The stinky cheese is one folks either love or hate, but if you want it, these are the folks that know how to make it.
Green County was where many Swiss immigrants to the Midwest settled, so Swiss cheese is a particular focus here. Less than 20 miles north Monroe, New Glarus is a true “Little Switzerland” right here in Wisconsin. Home to the Swiss Center of North America, this small town has some of the best Swiss food and culture outside Bern. Get traditional fondue at the Glarner Stube and stock up on local cheeses at Edelweiss Cheese Shop. Though it’s not cheese related, you’ll also want to stop at New Glarus Brewery, an award-winning craft beer spot that only distributes here in the state.
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7. Meet the kick-butt women of Wisconsin cheese.
Wisconsin is the only state that requires its cheesemakers to be licensed. It’s also the only state to have a master cheesemaker program. Of the 74 Masters currently listed on the Center for Dairy Research page, just two are women. Of 1,200 licensed cheesemakers in Wisconsin, less than 60 are women.
But the women who are producing are undeniably amazing. Julie Hook at Hook’s Cheese in Mineral Point is still the only woman to have ever won the World Cheese Championship. Marieke Penterman is the woman behind the Marieke Gouda cheese mentioned above that won second and third place in the country at the most recent US Cheese Championships. Katie Fuhrmann of LaClare Farms makes artisan goat milk cheeses and her Evalon won the 2011 US Cheese Championship Best in Show.
At Marieke Gouda in Thorp in the western part of the state, you’ll find a whole cheesemaking experience as they invite you on their farm to view the operation. There are observation windows into the milking parlor as well as cameras that let you see into the calving pen, barn and more.
8. Make your cheese squeak.
When making cheese, milk is pasteurized until the whey and curd separate. The whey is removed and the curd is pressed to remove even more moisture and eventually create the wheel or block of cheese you’re used to seeing. But the curd itself is also edible. They’re generally roughly a peanut-shape and they’re a bit springier than most cheese. The moisture and unpressed texture are what give the squeak against your teeth as you bite into them.
Cheese curds are best eaten within hours of being produced. The opposite of most cheese, they actually get worse as they age, so they’re frequently only found in places that have cheese production facilities. It makes sense, then, that curds are fairly unique to Wisconsin. Everyone here has their own personal favorite curds, but that usually has to do with proximity — and therefore freshness — of the curd.
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