Soft Ripened Cheeses — Flavor Added
3rd Place for Turner Farm Creamery’s Whitecap

Original Recipe / Open Category – Cow’s Milk
1st Place for Spring Day Creamery’s La Vie en Rose

Flavor Added Monterey Jack
3rd Place for Pineland Farm Creamery’s Pepper Jack

Click here for a full list of winners at the 2012 event.

Three Maine cheese makers won four awards at the 2011 American Cheese Society competition held at the ACS Conference in Montreal, Quebec, Canada this year. There were 1676 entries this year competing for ribbons in 109 different categories. This is, by far, the largest dairy product competition in North America, and the entrants represent cheese and dairy products that have also won awards around the world.

The four awards won by Guild cheese makers are:

Three Maine cheese makers won four awards at the 2011 American Cheese Society competition held at the ACS Conference in Montreal, Quebec, Canada this year. There were 1676 entries this year competing for ribbons in 109 different categories. This is, by far, the largest dairy product competition in North America, and the entrants represent cheese and dairy products that have also won awards around the world.

The four awards given to Guild cheese makers are:

• American Made / International Style: Open Category Cow’s Milk — 3rd Place to Hahn’s End, Phippsburg
• Blue Veined Made with Cow’s Milk with Rind or External Coating — 2nd Place to Spring Day Creamery, Durham
• Yogurts, Plain, Made with Sheep’s Milk — 3rd Place to Appleton Creamery
• Aged Goat’s Milk Cheese: Open Category — 3rd Place to Appleton Creamery

“Maine produces some of the best milk in the world,” said Eric Rector, President of the Maine Cheese Guild in response to the announcement of these awards. “So it’s not a surprise that year after year, Maine cheese makers are recognized for their outstanding products at major competitions such as that conducted by the American Cheese Society.”

Rector also pointed out that “the support given to the Guild every year by its members, including it’s Sponsoring Partners, make it possible for us to bring world-class cheese making instructors to Maine to continue to improve our skills, as well as to help Maine cheese makers attend important conferences like ACS. This year the Guild helped send four cheese makers to the ACS Conference in Montreal where they were able to learn from and connect with the best in the world. We would like to thank all our supporters for their contribution to this kind of recognition.”

Congratulations to our three Guild winners in 2011!

The Maine Cheese Guild is sponsored by its members, as well as by Five Islands Farm, Treats of Maine, and Turner Farm.

Congratulations to two Maine Cheese Guild cheese makers who were awarded multiple ribbons at the 2010 American Cheese Society conference competition, the largest cheese competition in North America including entries from the US, Canada, and Mexico.

A total of five awards went to the two Guild members: Pineland Farms Creamery won three awards; Appleton Creamery won two awards. Maine maintains its lock on the Feta category, with each cheese maker winning ribbons there, while Pineland’s Salsa Jack has won awards for several years.

All the 2010 ACS competition awards can be found here.

Soft-ripened white mold cheeses, flavor added:
1st place — Appleton Creamery, “Camella”

Feta, cow’s milk:
3rd place: Pineland Farms Creamery, “Feta”

Feta, sheep’s milk:
1st Appleton Creamery, “Sophia Feta”

Monterrey Jack, flavor added:
3rd place: Pineland Farm Creamery, “Salsa Jack”

Cheese Spreads, flavor added:
2nd place: Pineland Farms Creamery, “Spreadable Salsa Jack”

[start press release]
July 25, 2008

CHICAGO, IL — Cheesemakers of the Maine Cheese Guild (www.mainecheeseguild.org) won 7 ribbons including two blue ribbons for first place in their categories at the 2008 American Cheese Society (ACS – www.cheesesociety.org) Competition. Six different participating Guild cheesemakers won at least one award. The judging took place at the annual ACS Conference, held in Chicago, IL this year, and included 1149 cheeses entered from 187 North American cheese producers making this one of the largest U.S. cheese competition in history.

The winners from Maine competed in a broad range of categories and styles using cow’s, goat’s , and sheep’s milk, several of them organic. Because the competition provides useful feedback to cheesemakers from the judging in addition to the chance to win a nationally recognized award for their efforts.

The ribbons were awarded on July 25th in the Merle Reskin Theatre in front of hundreds of conference participants including many of the competing cheesemakers.

2008 American Cheese Society Competition Award Winners from the Maine Cheese Guild are:

FIRST PLACE
–Soft Ripened Cheeses / Made From Goat’s Milk
– *Liberty Fields Farm, Saco Bay Dusk

FIRST PLACE
–American Originals / Monterey Jack Cow’s Milk Cheese
– *Pineland Farms Creamery, Monterey Jack

SECOND PLACE
–Feta Made From Sheeps Milk
– *Appleton Creamery, Sophia Feta

SECOND PLACE
–Fresh Goat Cheese / Hand Shaped
– *Sunset Acres, Logs

SECOND PLACE
–Cultured Milk Products / Creme Fraiche Made From Cow’s Milk
– *Silvery Moon Creamery, Creme Fraiche

SECOND PLACE
–Aged Goat’s Milk Cheeses
– *Appleton Creamery, Chevre in Grape Leaf

THIRD PLACE
–Farmestead Cheeses / Fresh Goat Rindless
– *Painted Pepper Farm, Dairy Delights Chevre Farmstead Plain

According to the ACS web site, in order to qualify for the competition, cheesemakers and their products must meet the following basic criteria:

* Entering companies must hold current membership and be “in good standing” with the ACS.
* Cheeses entered into the competition must have been available for sale to the general public at least 12 months prior to the competition.
* Cheeses entered into the competition must be characteristic of the accepted guidelines for the category in which the cheeses are entered.

Entries are judged by teams of technical and aesthetic judges, with each team scoring the individual entry based on a cumulative point system. In order to be eligible for a First, Second, or Third place ribbon, scores must meet a minimum number of points for each level. If no entries meet the minimum score for a placement level, such as first or second place, then an award is not given for that level.

Point total ties were recognized for second and third place, but first place ribbons were given only to a single cheese in each category.

The Maine Cheese Guild’s representation at the 2008 American Cheese Society Conference and Awards was generously supported by:

* The Maine Department of Agriculture
*

[end press release]