GREEN BAY, WI – Out of 2,249 entries in the 2023 United States Championship Cheese Contest, just 20 cheeses remain in the hunt for the title: U.S. Champion Cheese. Over the past two days in Green Bay, Wisconsin, a team of 42 elite cheese judges have evaluated entries from 35 states based on their technical merits, including flavor, texture, appearance, and taste.
The Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association, the Contest host organization, is now pleased to announce – by order of class number – the names and makers of the cheeses being judged for the top prize.
Class 2: Cheddar, Medium (Three to Six Months)
Cheese Name: Cheddar
Maker: Dillon Sylla
Company: Associated Milk Producers Inc.
Location: Blair, Wisconsin
Class 4: Cheddar, Aged One to Two Years
Cheese Name: Cracker Barrel Aged Reserve Cheddar
Maker: Manufactured by Agropur – Weyauwega
Company: Lactalis Heritage Dairy
Location: Weyauwega, Wisconsin
Class 6: Traditional Waxed Cheddar, Mild to Medium
Cheese Name: Roelli Haus Select Cheddar
Maker: Team Roelli
Company: Roelli Cheese
Location: Shullsburg, Wisconsin
Class 8: Natural Rinded Cheddar
Cheese Name: Lucky Linda Clothbound Cheddar
Maker: Redhead Creamery
Company: Redhead Creamery
Location: Brooten, Minnesota
Class 12: Baby Swiss Style
Cheese Name: Baby Swiss Wheel, Rindless
Maker: DV Team 2
Company: Guggisberg Cheese
Location: Millersburg, Ohio
Class 13: Swiss Style Cheese
Cheese Name: Founder 56 Emmentaler Swiss
Maker: James Yoder
Company: Rothenbuhler Cheesemakers
Location: Middlefield, Ohio
Class 19: Provolone, Mild
Cheese Name: Mild Provolone Cheese
Maker: Cuba Team 3
Company: Great Lakes Cheese
Location: Cuba, New York
Class 23: Parmesan
Cheese Name: Organic Copper Kettle Parmesan
Maker: Team Lake Country Dairy
Company: Schuman Cheese
Location: Turtle Lake, Wisconsin
Class 38: Gouda, Aged
Cheese Name: Europa
Maker: Arethusa Cheese Team
Company: Arethusa Farm Dairy
Location: Bantam, Connecticut
Class 45: Washed Rind/Smear Ripened Semi-soft Cheeses
Cheese Name: Whitney
Maker: Jasper Hill Farm
Company: Jasper Hill Farm
Location: Greensboro Bend, Vermont
Class 47: Pepper Flavored Monterey Jack, Mild Heat
Cheese Name: Pepper Jack
Maker: Juan Torres
Company: Glanbia Nutritionals
Location: Twin Falls, Idaho
Class 48: Pepper Flavored Monterey Jack, Medium Heat
Cheese Name: Ghost Pepper Jack
Maker: Jim Falls Cheese Team
Company: Associated Milk Producers Inc.
Location: Jim Falls, Wisconsin
Class 54: Open Class: Semi-soft Cheeses
Cheese Name: Cello Fontal
Maker: Lake Country Dairy
Company: Schuman Cheese
Location: Turtle Lake, Wisconsin
Class 55: Open Class: Hard Cheeses
Cheese Name: Vintage Cupola American Original Cheese
Maker: Team Door Artisan Cheese Company
Company: Red Barn Family Farms
Location: Egg Harbor, Wisconsin
Class 56: Open Class: Cheeses with Natural Rind
Cheese Name: St. Malachi
Maker: Team Doe Run
Company: The Farm at Doe Run
Location: Coatesville, Pennsylvania
Class 59: Open Class: Hard Cheeses, Flavored
Cheese Name: Rumiano Pepato Dry Jack
Maker: Rumiano Cheese
Company: Rumiano Cheese
Location: Crescent City, California
Class 77: Hard Goat’s Milk Cheeses
Cheese Name: Hootenanny
Maker: Goat Rodeo Team
Company: Goat Rodeo Farm & Dairy
Location: Allison Park, Pennsylvania
Class 83: Hard Sheep’s Milk Cheeses
Cheese Name: Sweet Annie
Maker: Landmark Creamery
Company: Landmark Creamery
Location: Belleville, Wisconsin
Class 86: Soft & Semi-soft Mixed Milk Cheeses
Cheese Name: Breezy Blue
Maker: Kingston Cheese Team
Company: Kingston Creamery
Location: Cambria, Wisconsin
Class 88: Hard Mixed Milk Cheeses
Cheese Name: Wegmans Three Milk Gouda
Maker: Todd Pontius
Company: Old Chatham Creamery
Location: Groton, New York
A complete list of gold, silver, and bronze medalists by class is available now at USChampionCheese.org.
The 2023 U.S. Championship Cheese Contest winner will be named via livestream at USChampionCheese.org at 2:00 p.m. (CT) on Thursday, February 23.
The U.S. Championship Cheese Contest, initiated in 1981, is the nation’s premier technical cheese, butter, and yogurt competition and this year marks the 21st biennial edition.
