Door County cheese is second-best in country, Kewaunee County cheese maker wins four classes
Assistant Chief Judge Tim Czmowski holds up Vintage Cupola American Original Cheese made by Door Artisan Cheese Co. of Egg Harbor for Red Barn Family Farms in Appleton. The cheese took second place overall during the U.S. Championship Cheese Contest on Feb. 23, 2023, at the Resch Expo in Ashwaubenon, Wis.
ASHWAUBENON – A Door County cheese was edged out of being named the best in the U.S., while a Kewaunee County cheese maker was a quadruple gold medal winner Thursday at the 2023 U.S. Championship Cheese Contest, which was held over three days at the Resch Center near Green Bay.
The Vintage Cupola American Original Cheese made by the team at Door Artisan Cheese Co. in Egg Harbor was named first runner-up in the championship, scoring 98.613 points out of 100 in the final judging. The champion cheese is a Europa made by Arethusa Farm Dairy in Connecticut that scored 98.739. Door Artisan makes the Cupola line of cheeses for Red Barn Family Farms of Appleton, and they’re available at the Door Artisan store and across the state.
The Door Artisan/Red Barn Cupola was named by judges as one of 20 finalists out of 2,249 total entries in 113 classes for the championship. The Cupola was named Best in Class in the open class hard cheeses category, scoring 99.44 points in class judging.
A row of cheese entries at the U.S. Championship Cheese Contest on Feb. 21, 2023, at the Resch Expo in Ashwaubenon, Wis.
Another big winner from the area was Jeremy Robinson of Agropur in Luxemburg, whose cheeses earned four Best in Class awards. Robinson’s mozzarella scored 99.275 points, his part skim mozzarella scored 99.385, his smoked provolone scored 99.65, and he won the reduced sodium cheese class with a 99.3 for his reduced sodium provolone. He added a third place in the mild provolone class with a 99.625 score.
Agropur cheese makers Pat Doell and Ezra Frazer also picked up medals in mozzarella and provolone classes. Doell placed second in mild provolone at 99.725 and third in mozzarella…
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