The Twisted Origin Story Behind Monterey Jack Cheese
The history of Monterey Jack is not quite as upbeat as the origins of some other cheeses, like ancient France’s Muenster cheese. As explained by Encyclopedia Britannica, the consensus is that Monterey Jack fittingly came from Monterey County, California. There, Wisconsin Cheese notes 18th-century friars invented the product before a businessman named David Jacks (originally named David Jack) got his hands on the stuff and then championed it commercially. Yet, in order to do this, Jacks essentially stole the recipe.
Back in the 1700s, Spanish missionaries set up shop in places like modern San Diego and Monterey Bay, per Food & Wine. These missions brought cattle, which produced milk that later turned into queso blanco país. In 1848, the U.S. purchased California from Mexico, and Americans rushed in to manifest their destiny. Many of the Mexican farmers who stayed were soon cheated out of their land. (It’s worth noting indigenous peoples inhabited California for tens of thousands of years before Spanish missionaries ever arrived, per History). This set the stage for a New Yorker, David Jacks, to profit immensely.
According to Food & Wine, Jacks swooped in on a hastily put-together land auction and bought up most of Monterey City. Having become a landlord, he used tax hikes and language barriers to his advantage, foreclosing upon countless properties. In the process, Jacks took possession of many dairy farm properties, including queso blanco país. He then sold it, renaming it “Jack’s Cheese,” which caught on statewide as “Monterey Jack’s cheese.”
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