ARCATA, Calif. – Not in her wildest dreams did Cypress Grove Chevre® Founder Mary Keehn imagine that Humboldt Fog® would become America’s favorite artisan cheese. But it actually was a dream of Mary’s from 1992 where she envisioned the now iconic cheese that has won numerous domestic and international awards.
“I had a dream on the return flight home from my first cheesemaking trip to France,” recalled Keehn. “I saw everything about this cheese so clearly and I knew exactly how I would make it. So I went home, made it, and nobody bought it. It took years of selling a bit here, a bit there. It wasn’t until Florence Fabricant of the New York Times wrote about Humboldt Fog that it caught on.”
“Caught on” may be an understatement. “Humboldt Fog forever changed the American cheese scene when it was introduced 20 years ago. Humboldt Fog broke the barrier; it was an American Original that made us all realize that America could make cheese as good as anything we'd ever tasted from the European masters,” said Ray Bair, owner of Cheese Plus, San Francisco’s premier cheese and specialty food store. “I firmly believe the American (domestic) cheese business would not be as successful as it is today without the birth of Humboldt Fog.”
Humboldt Fog’s popularity continues to grow every year. According to Cypress Grove’s Sales and Marketing Director Bob McCall, Humboldt Fog is available in all 50 states and is the best-known and most widely-distributed artisan cheese.
“Every year since its introduction Humboldt Fog has experienced double-digit growth,” said McCall. “It’s an accessible cheese that is appealing in both flavor and appearance. The delicate layer of ash under the rind and through the cheese tempers the tang of the goat milk and gives the cheese a layer-cake look when sliced. It’s a celebration cheese.”
Among those celebrating with Cypress Grove are its fellow cheesemakers, who have a deep appreciation for Keehn and her accomplishments as well as her contributions to the artisan cheese industry. “When I think of Humboldt Fog the only thing that surpasses the beauty of the cheese, is the people behind the cheese,” said Tomales Bay Foods & Cowgirl Creamery Co-founder Peg Smith. “The folks behind Cypress Grove, starting with Mary Keehn, are passionately working to make the cheese and the world the best it can be.”
This year, Cypress Grove has plans to celebrate the cheese that put Cypress Grove and Humboldt, Calif., where the company is based, on the culinary map. Its year-long celebration began at the Fancy Food Show in San Francisco and continues throughout the year.
About Cypress Grove Chevre® Founder Mary Keehn
Keehn is among a generation of cheesemakers – many of them women – whose passion for an authentic rural life and making handcrafted cheeses of exceptional quality literally created a category for specialty cheese in this country.
“When we entered the market, the only goat cheese you could buy was from Europe,” said Keehn. “Cypress Grove was one of a really dedicated community of cheesemakers in California and across the country that built a market for a new kind of American cheese.”
This past summer, Keehn was among the eight men and women recognized as pioneers of the goat cheese. She and her fellow cheesemakers were inducted into the ACS Academy of Cheese in honoring of a quarter century’s worth of work in growing the category of goat cheese in the United States.
About Cypress Grove Chevre® (www.cypressgrovechevre.com)
Cypress Grove Chevre® is the leading producer of fine American goat cheese, including the top-selling American artisanal classic, Humboldt Fog®. Founded in 1983 by Mary Keehn, Cypress Grove Chevre continues a tradition of innovation by introducing original American cheeses to the marketplace, such as Sgt. Pepper™ and PsycheDillic™. Based in Arcata, CA, where the Redwoods meet the Pacific, Cypress Grove’s award-winning family of products can be found at fine retail outlets and restaurants across the country. Cypress Grove’s mission is to provide its customers with an innovative and unique selection of cheeses while taking care of its employees, community, dairies and the environment.
Source: Cypress Grove Chevre®