Cutting the Curd

This week’s episode of Cutting the Curd focuses on New Jersey family businesses. Hear from Bob Sickles of Sickles Market, a multi-generational family business. Since 1908, Sickles Market has become a favorite destination for the best produce, plants, gourmet foods, garden accessories, and gifts at the New Jersey Shore. Later in the show, hear from Andrea Carbine, Owner and Founder of Local Roots Cranford Community of Businesses. Find out how she manages to divide her time between A Toute Heure, 100 Steps Supper Club + Raw Bar, Jack’s Run Gardens, and The ATH MarketBox! This program was sponsored by Academie Opus Caseus.

“Growth and change is important – it’s relentless – but it’s not like I need to open 40 or 50 stores or anything.” [5:00]

— Bob Sickles of Sickles Market

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The results are in! This year’s Cheesemonger Invitational in San Francisco was a huge success and a winner was crowned – Perry Soulos! Tune in and hear from both Perry and the organizer of the wildly successful event – Adam Moskowitz. Hear how cheesemongers faced off, what plans are in store for the event in the future and what’s going on generally in the world of cheesemongers today! This program was sponsored by The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board.

“The Cheesemonger Invitational like a fourteen hour day when you include partying – it’s totally a marathon.” [10:00]

— Adam Moskowitz on Cutting the Curd

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On this edition of the Cutting the Curd Book Review, Diane Stemple chats with Tami Parr, author of Pacific Northwest Cheese: A History about, well… the history of cheese in the Pacific Northwest! Learn about the research that was involved with writing the book, and how Tami had to dig through the archives of the Library of Congress to discover some of the West’s oldest cheesemakers! Learn how milk shortages affected cheesemakers, and why competition for milk was fierce in the earliest days of Oregon cheesemaking. Were goat and sheep’s milk cheeses common in the early days of Pacific Northwest cheesemaking? Finally, find out how the industrial revolution allowed cheesemakers to flourish in the region. Thanks to our sponsor, Academie Opus Caseus. Music by Obey City.

“In the early history of the Pacific Northwest, there wasn’t a lot of milk. So there were huge amounts of competition for cheesemakers…” [20:00]

“A farmer can make a lot more of a profit off of a cow than a goat or a sheep.” [22:10]

— Tami Parr on Cutting the Curd

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It’s the holiday season, and many folks are wondering, “What’s the best cheese to bring to a family gathering?” Anne Saxelby is joined by two guests who can help you make the right cheese decision: Andy Hatch of Uplands Cheese and Matt Rubiner of Rubiner’s Cheesemongers and Grocers! Tune in to hear Andy Hatch talk about the processes involved with making Rush Creek Reserve- the perfect holiday cheese! How does Uplands Cheese use spruce bark to flavor Rush Creek Reserve, and how often is the cheese washed during the aging process? Later, Matt Rubiner talks about the holiday atmosphere at Rubiner’s Cheesemongers, and how folks at the cheese counter can anticipate the seasonal rush. What cheeses sell best at Rubiner’s during the holidays? Find out all of this and more on this week’s edition of Cutting the Curd!

“Improvements happen year to year, not batch-to-batch.” [10:00]

— Andy Hatch on Cutting the Curd

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On this edition of the Cutting the Curd Book Review, Diane Stemple talks with Sue Conley, co-author of Cowgirl Creamery Cooks. Sue, along with her partner Peggy Smith, were artisan cheese innovators with the establishment of the Cowgirl Creamery in Marin County, California. Tune in to hear how the Cowgirls combined recipes with cheese know-how in order to create an encompassing cheese guide. Tune in to learn how to arrange cheese plates according to region, variety, and beyond! Hear how Cowgirl’s Mt Tam evolved from a gouda recipe, and how the development of Red Hawk was a lucky mistake! This program has been sponsored by Academie Opus Caseus. Music by The California Honeydrops.

“One suggestion for arranging a cheese plate is to take all of the same kind of cheese, such as a cheddar, but from all different regions.” [16:55]

“I was always very confident in making fresh cheeses. It’s just like baking!” [18:50]

— Sue Conley on Cutting the Curd

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Want to learn how to make cheese? Live in Brooklyn? Why haven’t you been to the Brooklyn Kitchen yet!? Learn all about New York City’s original “small box cooking store” and their educational programs on this weeks episode of Cutting the Curd. Anne is joined by Brooklyn Kitchen’s ­Director of Education, Michelle Warner, who shares her personal story and gives some insight into the programs at Brooklyn Kitchen! This program has been sponsored by Cain Vineyard & Winery.

“People always walk away very satisfied from their classes at the Brooklyn Kitchen because we make sure that they are set up with an instructor who knows what they’re doing, and they’ve had a lot of experience in doing it before.” [8:50]

— Michelle Warner on Cutting the Curd

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What is affinage? Simply put, it’s the art of ripening cheese. However, as you’ll learn on this episode of Cutting the Curd, it’s a complicated art that is as challenging as it is rewarding. Hear from Susan Sturman, of the Academie Opus Caseus, a school for cheese professionals in France with a program in English for anglophone cheese professionals worldwide as she explains the school’s programs in affinage. Later in the show, affinage expert ­Laini Fondilier of Lazy Lady Farm joins in and continues the conversation. Learn out all about the art of affinage on this educational episode of Cutting the Curd! Thanks to our sponsor, Academie Opus Caseus.

“There’s a lot of science behind [affinage], but it’s highly empirical. You just have to watch!” [6:00]

— Sustan Sturman on Cutting the Curd

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Kirstin Jackson focuses on American cheese in her new book, It’s Not Your, It’s Brie: Unwrapping America’s Unique Culture of Cheese! On this edition of Cutting the Curd‘s book review, guest host Diane Stemple talks with Kirstin about her first book, and the research and stress that went along with writing. Hear how Kirstin learned about different inspirations for cheeses from farmers and cheesemakers! Find out why Kirstin works within a light-hearted aesthetic, and why she imposed such a tight deadline upon herself. Would Kirstin ever write about international cheese? Find out all of this and more on this edition of the Cutting the Curd book review! This program has been brought to you by Whole Foods. Music has been provided by The California Honeydrops.

“Working in wine, I saw what happened when you make something too precious and too romantic… With wine, when something gets too precious, it’s hard for some people to get involved.” [5:25]

— Kirstin Jackson on Cutting the Curd

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On this week’s special episode of Cutting the Curd, host Diane Stemple speaks with Gordon Edgar, author of Cheesemonger: A Life on the Wedge. Gordon Edgar is a cheesemonger based in San Francisco, California. He has been selling and working with cheese since 1994, at San Francisco’s largest grocery store. His latest book, Cheesemonger: A Life on the Wedge, is the highly readable story of Gordon’s unlikely career as a cheesemonger at San Francisco’s worker-owned Rainbow Grocery Cooperative. With a refreshingly unpretentious sensibility, Edgar intertwines his own life story with his ongoing love affair with cheese, and offers readers an unflinching, highly entertaining on-the-ground look at America’s growing cheese movement. Learn more bout Gordon, his craft, and the book on this episode of Cutting the Curd! This program has been sponsored by Consider Bardwell Farm.

“In the end the cheese always does the talking.”

“Early death is not likely to come as a result of eating fancy cheese.”

— Gordon Edgar in his book, Cheesemonger: A Life on the Wedge

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Take a trip to Florida on the latest episode of Cutting the Curd! For its “State of Cheese” series, Anne Saxelby takes the show to the south, chatting with Louise Kennedy Converse of Artisan Cheese Company in Florida and Kathleen Cotter of The Bloomy Rind in Nashville, TN and the Southern Cheese Festival. This program was sponsored by SPONSOR.

Louside Kennedy Converse of Artisan Cheese Company

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