Known for their component-rich milk, Jersey cows have long been known as the cheese queens. On June 11, the World Jersey Cattle Bureau hosted the second-ever World Jersey Cheese Awards at the breed's namesake - the Isle of Jersey in the English Channel. All entries were required to be composed of 100 percent Jersey milk.
Over 100 entries were received from 10 countries, with a total of 38 medals awarded by an expert judging panel. The cheese awarded the title of the World's Best Jersey Cheese 2010 was "Jersey Blue" made by Willi Schmid from Switzerland.
Cheeses receiving Gold Medals included seven from the United States, four from the United Kingdom, two from Switzerland, two from the Netherlands, one from Denmark, and one from Australia. They included:
Alexandrina Cheese Company, Alexandrina Vintage Cheddar, Australia
Thise Mejeri, Thise Jersey Gouda, Denmark
De Groote Voort, Remeker 6 months in age, Netherlands
De Groote Voort, Olde Remeker 1.5 years in age, Netherlands
Willi Schmid, Jersey Blue, Switzerland
Willi Schmid, Muhlstein, Switzerland
J&E Dickinson - Longley Farm, Cream Cheese, United Kingdom
Exmoor Blue Cheese Company, Partidges Blue, United Kingdom
S&R Poortman & Sons, Bruckclay Gold - Jersey Gold, United Kingdom
Northumberland Cheese Company, Kielder, United Kingdom
The Farmstead at Mine Brook, Jersey Maid Neige en Ete, USA
Cobb Hill Cheese, Welsh Caerphilly Style Cheddar, USA
Cobb Hill Cheese, Farmstead Alpine Style Natural Rind Cheese, USA
Bellwether Farms, Carmody, USA
Farms for City Kids Foundation, Spring Brook Farm Tarentaise, USA
Gingerbread Jersey Cheese, Taste of Athens, USA
Esteemed judges from around the world decided on the award winners. Below are comments from two of them:
John Allison from the United Kingdom: "The Gold Medal winners were of an extremely high standard and would have ranked as such anywhere in the world. I was amazed by the variety of cheeses made from Jersey milk. The diligence and skill of the panel of judges made it an enjoyable and worthwhile competition."
Kathy Guidi from Canada: "It was wonderful to see such an array of high-quality hand-crafted cheeses from around the world made exclusively from Jersey milk."
