Day Three Forty Eight - Spotlight on Wisconsin & Upland Cheese Company

In honor of the Green Bay Packers winning their playoff game today, I thought I would do a feature on my favorite Wisconsin cheese producers - Uplands Cheese Company. Located on the opposite side of the state as Green Bay, this creamery based in Dodgeville, Wisconsin produces some of my favorite cheese nation and world wide. It has been owned by two families since the 1980s and over the past three decades they have perfected their take on an Alpine style cheese.

What is this cheese?

Well it's Pleasant Ridge Reserve. Made from May till October when their cows are being milked and out at pasture, this farmstead Alpine style cheese adopts certain cheese making styles of Gruyere's and Beaufort's but the unique landscape of Southwestern Wisconsin and the grasses that the cows whose milk is utilized to  make this cheese makes all the difference in the world -- it is honest. What do I mean by that? I mean it is fresh, buttery, creamy, nutty, and all around fabulously infused with the local terroir. Crafted in ten pound wheels that are aged for anywhere between a few months and a few years. The older the cheese gets, the flavor nuances become more developed, complex, and special. Melted butter, butterscotch, toasted nutty notes, hints of honey with a woodsy sort of feel and of course that classic crystallization crunch present in older cheeses.

A great cheese for a cold winter night like this one with a nice red wine or a deep dark beer.

Image courtesy of www.uplandscheese.com