B E S T C H E E S E S 202 2 culturecheesemag.com 17
WHITNEY
Jasper Hill Farm
Greensboro, Vt.
Made with the raw milk of Jasper Hill's grass-fed herd,
ACS First Place Best of Show winner Whitney leverages
Jura-mountain inspiration into something uniquely
Vermont. Its tacky pink exterior contains a pliant, milky
white paste redolent of juicy fruit and gummy candy.
She's a stinker, perhaps best enjoyed molten-lava hot at
your next winter soirée.
CLOTHBOUND CHEDDAR
Grafton Village Cheese
Company
Brattleboro, Vt.
There's stiff competition in ACS's
clothbound cheddar category, so
Grafton's first-place win is nothing
to sneeze at. Seven months of aging
in cheesecloth give these wheels their
mottled gray rind, grassy golden paste,
and deep flavors of forest floor and
salted nuts. Crumbly, faintly citric, and
exquisitely balanced, this might just be
the perfect table cheese.
FORMAGELLA
Nicasio Valley Cheese Company
Nicasio, Calif.
The Lafranchi family built Nicasio Valley Cheese Company
in California in 2010 with the goal of honoring their
hometown of Maggia, Switzerland. In ACS First Place
winner Formagella, they've brought their two worlds
together beautifully—pudgy at the center and silken at the
rind, this cheese spills forth with notes of hay and malt,
needing little more than a piece of sourdough to catch it.
