Cheeses

Our county is abounds with cheese! With over 30 cheese makers in our backyard, we are proud to offer a huge selection of local cheeses! Goat, sheep, cow – soft, aged, blue – our list is extensive and impressive. Our cheese department specializes in tracking down local artisan cheese makers, and bringing them to you. We like to think of ourselves as cheese connoisseurs. We offer a huge variety of local and imported cheeses. Whether you are looking the perfect cheese plate to impress friends at the upcoming dinner party, a cheese to spread over your fresh baked pizza or grate over your favorite dish, we have the cheeses for you. Need help finding the perfect wine to pair with cheese? Just ask Kate. Kate, our cheese specialist can answer your questions.

Impress your friends with these fun facts about cheese*

Q: How many goats does it take to make a pound of goat cheese?
A: Two can easily get it done in 24 hours. Larger goats like French Alpines produce an average of nine pounds of milk per day (8.6 pounds = 1 gallon), and it takes about 10 pounds of milk to make one pound of cheese.

Q: What are those little things hanging down from under the goats’ necks?
A: They are called wattles, and, as with the beards, some does (females goats) have them, while others don’t.

Q: What’s the difference between mozzarella cheeses?
A: Mozzarella di bufala is the official name the Italian government uses to recognize its production strictly within the Campania region of Naples. So American made cheese of that style must be called “mozzarella made from buffalo milk.” Both are different from the more mainstream mozzarella found in America that’s made from regular cow’s milk, called fior di latte.

*Resource sonomacounty.com

JUST A FEW OF OUR CHEESES

LOCAL CHEESE PURVEYORS
Cypress Grove
Pt. Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co.
Penny Royal Farms
Andante Dairy
Laura Chenel
Cowgirl Creamery
Nicasio Valley
Vella Cheese Co.
Marin French Cheese
Bellwether Farms
Redwood Hill Farm
Valley Ford

ITALY
Parmigiano Reggiano
Pecorino
Ricotta Salata
Buffala Mozzarella
Taleggio
Piave
Robiola
Boschetto al Tartufo
Aged Gorgonzola
Dolce Latte Gorgonzola
Fontina

FRANCE
Double Crème Brie
Roquefort
St. Andre
Blue D’Auvergne
Camembert
Fourme D’Ambert
Epoisses
St. AGur
Comte
Brillat Savarin
Pierre Robert
Bucheron
Port Salut

SPAIN
Manchego
Mahon
Urgelia
Drunken Goat

ENGLAND
Stilton
Cotswold
Huntsman Cheddar
Clotted Cream
Barber’s Cheddar
Coastal Cheddar
Cave Aged Truckle Cheddar
Shropshire Blue

HOLLAND
Gouda
Double Crème Gouda
Honey Bee Goat Gouda
Gouda w/ Black Truffle
Beemster – 18 or 26 month

SWISS
Gruyere
Emmenthaler