Info on Jasper Hills 5/11/13

The Cellars at Jasper Hill

 

Nestled in Greensboro, Vermont, on the edge of the pristine Caspian Lake, Jasper Hill Farm has helped solidfy and preserv e Vermont’s cheesemaking integrity since 2003.  Brothers Andy and Mateo Kehler founded the farm to find meaningful work in a place they love.  Their goal is to not only produce excellent cheese but also to help provide a stable environment to help small farms compete on a national scale.

The brothers Kehler have created a unique and sustainable business model that helps small dairy farmers produce, age, market, and sell their products.  The farm itself is:

“A network of seven underground vaults – a total of 22,000 square feet nestled beneath the pastures where Jasper Hill’s forty Ayrshire cows graze.  Each cave rests at distinct temperature and humidity levels, calibrated for different cheese styles.  Developing wheels undergo a customized testing, tasting, and affinage schedule before getting wrapped-up at their target age profile.”

 

Represented Farms

Cabot Creamery – Cabot is a cooperative that represents over 1,200 farms in New England and Upstate New York.  For over 90 years they have produced several commercially available cheddars as well as the award winning Cabot Clothbound Cheddar.  100% of profit goes straight back to the famers.  In 2003, Cabot asked the Cellars at Jasper Hill to help them make an exceptional English syle cheddar.  It was the beginning of a wonderful relationship.  Cabot Clothbound is a natural rind cheddar aged for a minimum of ten months.

Landaff Creamery – Doug and Deb Erb manage Landaff Creamery on Springvale Farm in Landaff, NH.  Their farm has show-quality Holstein cows and the Erbs are held in high esteem by other New England dairy farms.  Their closed herd gives very high quality milk and provides an ideal raw material for their cheesemaking operation.  Landaff is their flagship cheese, an cow’s milk tomme that is semi-firm and earthy.

von Trapp Farmstead – Sebastian and Dan von Trapp are skilled cheesemakers who set out to revitalize their parents’ dairy farm through artisan cheesemaking.   Each generation has called for a frest approach to keep the family business viable: their parents turned to certified-organic milk production while Sebastian and Dan have built a cheese house to transform this exceptional raw material into a unique and delicous cheese.  Oma is an approachable washed-rind cow’s milk cheese with intriguing and subtle complexities.

Scholten Family Farm – Patty and Roger Scholten are extraordinary dairy farmers and carefully manage their herd of Dutch Belt cows in Weybridge, Vermont.  Their cheese is a showcase for the rich milk of this heritage breed.  The Scholtens’ cheesemaking operation enables them to add value to their organic milk and create amore viable family business.  Weybridge is a certified-organic cow’s milk cheese with a delicate bloomy rind that imparts a subtle earthy aroma to the developing cream line beneath.  The center is creamy with bright citrus notes and a savory toasted finish.

Jasper Hill Farm – The farm is a family-owned dairy farm with a herd of 45 pastured Ayrshire cows.  Andy and Mateo Kehler have been making cheese since May of 2003.  They have several award winning cheeses including: Moses Sleeper, Winnimere, Harbison, Bayley Hazen Blue, and Alpha Tolman.