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Italy    The New World    France    Great Britain and Ireland  Spain

 

New World CheesesAustralia & USA

 

Australia

Roaring Forties Blue

King Island Dairy Roaring Forties Blue is a full flavoured blue with a sweet, slightly nutty character, a rich mouth feel and good aftertaste. The rindless cheese is matured in its wax coating, which cuts off the oxygen supply, promoting its sweet and fruity flavour. The wax also assists in retaining the blue's moisture, creating a smooth and creamy texture.

The cheese is named after the infamous Roaring Forties gales which frequently bring westerly winds of more than 100km per hour to the island which lies on 40 degrees latitude.

Roaring Forties Blue has enjoyed unsurpassed success at industry awards around the country and the world, the most significant being the 2006 Champion at the 78th Annual British Empire Cheese Show in Ontario, Canada.

 

 

We tell everyone that comes into the store ....the concept of cheese in Americas has changed! It is no longer just Velvita and American cheese.  With our lush pastures and rangelands that span the entire continent there are many well tended herds of sheep, goats and cows producing milk as good as any place in the world. In some cases we pay homage to European cheese making traditions and in others our best producers are creating Artisan American Originals like Color Rouge and San Joaquin Gold.  Regardless of their inspiration cheesemakers in north America produce cheese that are competitive on the world's stage and many are current and past world's champions!  All of us at Crossroads love our native producers and we promise you will see more examples in the future!

 

California

 

MT TAM
Just North of the San Francisco Bay, Mt. Tamalpais rises like a monument to Northern California's natural beauty. In deference, Cowgirl Creamery named its signature cheese MT TAM. It's a smooth, creamy, elegant, 10-oz, triple-cream - made with tasty organic milk from the Straus Family Dairy. MT TAM is firm, yet buttery with a mellow, earthy flavor reminiscent of white mushrooms.

1st Place - Los Angeles County Fair, 2008
2nd Place - American Cheese Society, 2008, Chicago
2nd Place - California State Fair, 2009

Red Hawk

Cowgirl Creamery captures the essence of West Marin with its Red Hawk, a triple-cream, washed-rind, fully-flavored cheese made from organic cow milk from the Straus Family Dairy. Aged four weeks and washed with a brine solution that tints the rind a sunset red-orange, Red Hawk won Best-In-Show at the American Cheese Society's Annual Conference in 2003 and a Gold Ribbon and 2nd Best-in-Show in 2009.

1st Place - Los Angeles County Fair, 2008

ST PAT

ST PAT is our seasonal springtime cheese. These rounds are made with whole organic milk from the Chileno Valley Jersey Dairy and are wrapped with stinging nettle leaves. Do not fear the nettles, since they are frozen to remove the sting before they are wrapped around the cheese. ST PAT, with its distinctive, green rind, commemorates the arrival of spring in Marin County. After three weeks of aging, ST PAT is mellow, soft, and full of flavor. The nettle leaves impart a smoky, artichoke flavor. ST PAT received a Gold Medal at the 2009 North American Jersey Cheese Competition.

 

Cirrus

Cirrus is our Pacific Northwest camembert. A smaller and creamier version of the classic Norman camembert, Cirrus is named after the thin white clouds that hang over the Olympic Mountains. It is ripened four weeks to an indulgent soft texture with rich, buttery flavor. Cirrus is best enjoyed within 60 days. Made from pasteurized cow’s milk • Net weight 5.5 oz

 

Seastack is our Pacific Northwest soft-ripened original. It is inspired by the gorgeous rock formations that dot the Pacific Northwest coast. Seastack is a mold-ripened, semi-lactic cow’s milk cheese that is the essence of slow food. It requires the best quality milk, the perfect environment and plenty of time. It is coated in vegetable ash and salt before ripening, which gives it a mottled, wild look not unlike their namesakes. Seastack is then ripened for two to three weeks to achieve a silky texture with intricate layers of flavor. Its mild, earthy flavor intensifies with time, becoming piquant as it ages. Seastack is best enjoyed within 45 days.

Made from pasteurized cow’s milk • Net weight 6 oz

 

The Goat Ladies of California

...Humboldt Fog

Our signature offering, Humboldt Fog® is an elegant, soft, surface ripened cheese. The texture is creamy and luscious with a subtle tangy flavor. Each handcrafted wheel features a ribbon of edible vegetable ash along its center and a coating of ash under its exterior to give it a distinctive, cake-like appearance. An American Original!

Serving Suggestions

Wine Pairings

White Wine

Red Wine

 

The classic flavor of truffle meets the velvety perfection of ripened goat milk cheese. Earthy, elegant, and sophisticated, it's sure to make even the most distinguished taste buds shake!

Serve with Pinot Grigio or Albarino or adding a slice to mashed potatoes!

White Wine

Red Wine

 

Midnight Moon

Aged six months or more, this pale, ivory cheese is firm, dense and smooth with the slight graininess of a long-aged cheese. The flavor is nutty and brown-buttery, with prominent caramel notes. The wheel is finished in a beautiful black wax. Made in Europe exclusively for Cypress Grove Chevre.

Serve with cured meats and serve as a meal!

Top with fig preserves and skip the bread and crackers!

Try in a classic Grilled Cheese Sandwich or in Mac and Cheese!

White Wine

Red Wine

 

Purple Haze

Fresh goat cheese in a three inch round chevre disk. The perfect mixture of lavender and fennel pollen gives this cheese a sweet flavor that plays off the acidity in the cheese for a delightful complement. 

White Wine

Red Wine

 

Rouge et Noir Triple Crème Brie

World Champion — The Cheese that Beat the French!

For the first time ever, an American cheese company beat the French in an International Competition for Brie Cheese! Marin French Cheese Factory took top honors at the 2005 World Cheese Awards in a blind International tasting competition with Brie cheese factories from around the world.

This was a dramatic follow up to being awarded The Winner of Best Soft Ripened Cheese in North America in 2003 by the American Cheese Society.

Delicious flavor and luscious texture is why the Rouge et Noir Triple Crème Brie Beat the French.
Marin French Triple Crème is described as luxurious and slightly sweet with an irresistibly creamy texture. Pairs well with Champagne and Strawberries!

Rouge et Noir Camembert

American Cheese Society 2004 & 2006 America’s Best Camembert

 
Is There a Difference Between Camembert and Brie? Yes! Taste the Difference with Rouge et Noir cheeses. Made with traditional, Old World cultures since 1904, this legendary “queen of cheeses” is a flavor sensation that even makes Europeans reminisce. It is fuller in flavor than Brie, soft and creamy to buttery in texture, with a “nutty” tanginess unlike any other soft-ripened cheese.

 

 

Fiscalini Bandaged Wrapped Cheddar

Award winning cheesemaker Jorge Mariano Gonzalez handcrafts and inspects every 60 pound wheel of Fiscalini Farms' bandage-wrapped raw-milk cheddar. It is quite rare for an English-style farmhouse cheddar like this to be produced in the U.S. All natural ingredients are used in the cheesemaking process. Made from Fiscalini's own milk and aged for 18 months on the property, this cheese was voted "Best Farmhouse Cheese" at the 2002 American Cheese Society Awards in Washington D.C. It is a wonderful example of the success of the artisan cheese movement in the U.S. today. Rich, buttery and sharp, Fiscalini Farmstead Cheddar is a world-class cheese.

 

Oregon

Rogue Blue Vein

Created a half a century ago, Oregon Blue Vein cheese has been the West Coast’s exemplary award-winning Raw Milk Blue cheese. Aged at least 90 days in our Roquefort modeled caves, its semi-soft texture is smooth and its flavor subtle. Richly hued blue-green veins randomly highlight the wheel.  Pairs nicely with figs, red silk pears, fresh spinach, Viognier wine,  rustic peasant bread and coffee.

Oregonzola from Oregon

This Gorgonzola-style cheese is aged a minimum of 120 days in our caves. During this time it takes on sharp, tangy, fruity characteristics that evoke our Italian heritage.
Oregonzola has slight, classic veins of mold and a creamy, buttery texture. Pairs nicely with Syrah and Pinot Noir wines, fruit, nuts, and prosciutto. An excellent ingredient in a risotto or fondue recipe or simply as the finale to a meal accompanied with wine.

 

Wisconsin

Uplands Cheese Company

Pleasant Ridge Reserve

One of the most highly regarded cheeses in the world!

..... a cult cheese in France where it is sold in the best markets!

and probably found in only a handful of stores in Colorado!

Made of raw cows' milk from 9 cross-breeds. Cheesemaker Mike Gingrich describes it best: 'Our cows graze lush pastures from early spring through fall just as all cows did before the industrialization of our food system. The result is milk that has excellent nutritional value and more varied and subtle flavor notes as expressed in the delicate flavor profile of Pleasant Ridge Reserve cheese.' We say: smooth, even pressed flesh with rich fruit, olives , herbs and a tang on the finish to rival the best Beaufort. Best in show, American Cheese Society 2001 and 2005. In Fall 2004 Mike built a cheesemkaing room on premises and enlarged his aging caves, making this a true farmstead production. Uplands milks 150 cows in batches of 16, with an additional 45-50 yearlings and 50 calves. The animals are outside all year round, going dry in early winter and beginning to calve in late March. "Extra Aged" is matured for 12-18 months, intensifying its flavors, especially the sweetness.
2008 American Cheese Society Winner: 2nd in category.  Pair with Riesling or Vouvray!

Vermont

Vermont Butter and Creamery

Bijou

An American line of French-style ripened goats’ cheeses would not be complete without a small bijou-like crottin. When wrapped in its micro-cave, the cheese is still fresh with a delicate rind. As it ages the interior becomes soft and the flavor more robust. When in France, you cannot read a menu that does not include chevre chaud. Simply cut Bijou in half and place rind side up on a baguette. Toast under the broiler for five minutes and serve with a salad. This French-Style Bistro entrée is perfect for a gathering with friends.

Colorado

Mouco from Fort Collins

ColoRouge

ColoRouge is a natural rind cheese that is reddish-orange in color with a slight white finish.We start with pasteurized whole milk, obtained from a local dairy. The cheese curd is gently ladled by hand into forms that give the cheese its shape and size.

 

Award Winning Cheese from Colorado

Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy 

Haystack Mountain Haystack Peak
This creamy fresh-ripened goat cheese has a creamy interior enhanced by a bloomy-rind surface that gives it character and complexity.  Serving suggestions: Goes well with quince paste or jam, toasted almonds or an assortment of dried fruits. Pair with Sancerre or fruitier wines such as Pinot Gris, Reisling or Gewurztraminer.  Awards: American Cheese Society, 2004, 2006 and 2007. Chosen by Saveur Magazine as one of American’s best artisanal cheeses in April 2005. 2005.

Utah

Barely Buzzed

Barely Buzzed is made in Utah by Beehive Cheese Co.. When I think of American artisan cheese, Utah doesn't usually come to mind, but it should because Tim Welsh and Pat Ford (founders of Beehive) have really hit a home run with Barely Buzzed - taking 1st place in the Flavored Cheddar category of the American Cheese Society's annual competition 2007, 2008, and 2009. And after tasting this cheese I think you'll agree with the judges.
Made with the highest quality of milk, and aged on racks made of Utah Blue Spruce in Beehive Cheese Co.'s caves, this cheese has a wonderfully nutty, rich flavor and a creamy, smooth texture. It's hand rubbed with a mixture of "Beehive Blend" coffee (from the Cheesemaker's brother-in-law's coffee company Legacy Coffee based out of Fruita), lavender buds, and oil. The rub finds its way through out the entire wheel of cheese to develop a caramel-like flavor which I absolutely adore, and the lavender gives it a unique and unexpected finish.

 

Easy recipes from around the Globe!