In Praise of Raw Cheese

by Matt Sutherland

In the United States, pasteurization laws dating from the early part of the twentieth century require that fresh milk be “pasteurized,” heated above 145 degrees Fahrenheit to neutralize potentially deadly bacteria. But the process has always rankled raw-milk advocates and artisanal cheese makers, because high heat eradicates all types of bacteria, both good and bad. Recently, studies in both Europe and the U.S. have shown that raw-milk drinkers are much less prone to allergies, suggesting that much more is lost during pasteurization than the very rare incidence of harmful bacteria.

The cheese maker’s lament is that bacterial activity is crucially important to the aromas and flavors in cheese. Current law does allow cheese to be made from raw milk, as long as it is aged for at least 60 days — a seemingly reasonable condition, except that young cheeses, in particular, are unquestionably more flavorful when made with raw milk. This also means that American cheese lovers miss out on some of the world’s most desirable cheeses, such as the French gems, raw-milk Brie and Camembert. These cheeses are “to die for”— and don’t make people sick.

The recent thrust for all things organic, biodynamic, and sustainable has only served to invigorate the American Cheese Society and others who would like to see the pasteurization laws loosened for cheese makers. These small-dairy farmers raising grass-fed cows, sheep, goats, and other milk-producing livestock bristle at the regulations, because the presence of harmful bacteria is typically a product of the unsanitary conditions mostly known to large, corporate dairy farms. The artisanal small farmers don’t feed their cows for the sole purpose of increasing milk output. Their animals subsist on mixed natural pastureland that offers upwards of 30 different species of plants, including clovers, herbs, and wildflowers, in addition to grasses. The cheese made from such bucolic circumstances is remarkably more flavorful than the alternative feedlots. Free-ranging animals incur no food costs and are healthier, so veterinarian visits remain rare; longevity is the norm.

While no young raw-milk cheeses are made domestically yet, Laura Werlin, author of Cheese Essentials and The All American Cheese and Wine Book, recently mentioned the cheeses, below, as excellent aged, raw-milk cheeses made domestically.

Some Wonderful Raw Cheeses

Big Woods Blue from Shepherd’s Way Farm in Minnesota
(blue sheep’s milk) / www.shepherdswayfarms.com

Queso de Mano from Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy in Colorado
(semi-hard goat’s milk) / www.haystackgoatcheese.com

Sarabande from Dancing Cow Farm in Vermont 
(washed-rind cow’s milk) / www.dancingcowcheese.com

Holly Springs from Sweet Grass Dairy in Georgia
(semi-hard goat’s milk) / www.sweetgrassdairy.com

Fiscalini Bandage-Wrapped Cheddar from California
(semi-hard cow’s milk) / www.fiscalinicheese.homestead.com

Piedmont from Everona Dairy in Virginia
(semi-hard sheep’s milk cheese) / www.everonadairy.com

Pleasant Ridge Reserve from Uplands Cheese Company in Wisconsin
(seasonal semi-hard cow’s milk) / www.uplandscheese.com

Mont St. Francis from Capriole Dairy in Indiana
(washed-rind goat’s milk cheese) / www.capriolegoatcheese.com

Rogue River Blue from Rogue Creamery in Oregon
(blue cow’s milk cheese) / www.roguecreamery.com

Grayson from Virginia
(seasonal washed-rind cow’s milk) / www.meadowcreekdairy.com