Here’s a little interview with Joe Matos Cheese by Anita Anderson of Discover Sonoma County Living
Joe Matos Cheese Bio
Joe and Mary Matos, 5th generation Portuguese cheesemakers, immigrated to the United States from the lush volcanic island of Sao Jorge, Azores in the 60’s and started making their family recipe for a cheese native to their homeland, St. Jorge in 1979 on their farm in the Laguna de Santa Rosa.
Today, the 7th generation of the Matos family is honored to continue the tradition of organic pasture- based biodynamic farming, milking our herd of 35 Holstein, Jersey and crossbred dairy cows, utilizing food waste diversion, raising all of our beef on our farm and hand making our Portuguese family’s raw milk farmstead St. Jorge cheese daily.
Currently owned and operated by 4th generation Mateo Fiscalini family members. Learn more about this Modesto based farmstead cheese maker in their video!
Their signature cheeses include a 14 month aged wrapped in cheesecloth Old World Aged Cheddar, a swiss alpine style cheese named Lionza and an Italian style semi-hard, raw cow’s milk cheese named San Joaquin Gold.
The California Artisan Cheese Guild is pleased to announce the recipient of the 4th annual Jennifer Bice Artisan Dairy/Cheesemaker Grant Award. Nicolette Grill, owner of Mojave Gold Inc., a small goat dairy located in the high desert of Southern California, has been chosen from numerous CACG member applicants. Grill established Mojave Gold Inc.
In 2014 along the Mojave River, halfway between Los Angeles and Las Vegas, and milks 30 dairy goats on twenty-five acres of green pasture in the Mojave Desert. On her small-scale goat diary, she makes artisan goat cheese, goat’s milk caramel, USDA whey-fed heritage pork and USDA pasture-raised lamb.
This is the fourth annual grant award of $10,000 that Jennifer Bice, Founder of Redwood Hill Farm & Creamery, has so generously offered as a means to support and mentor newer cheesemakers and dairy farmers in California.
Bice helped establish the California Artisan Cheese Guild in 2006 and served as a founding board member. The grant award stipulates that the recipient be a CACG member, and that funds be used for creamery or farm infrastructure, or for education that relates to improving farming or business practices.
In these trying times, small cheese makers, farmers and producers need your support more than ever. We highly recommend supporting your local community where ever you are in the world.
Here is our guide to supporting the local cheese community in California!
Listen to the secrets and stories of three California cheesemakers and one legendary winemaker, taste three stellar California cheeses including a just-launched you-won’t-believe-how-good-it-is creamy wonder all while sipping and pairing the unparalleled Kendall-Jackson Grand Reserve Chardonnay and Grand Reserve Pinot Noir.
Hosted by cheese author and speaker Laura Werlin featuring Winemaster Randy Ullom from Kendall-Jackson.
This seasonal cheese from Cowgirl Creamery is a delight.
“Chimney Rock, starts with organic Holstein milk from John and Karen Taylor’s Bivalve Dairy in Point Reyes. The rich bloomy rind cheese is spritzed with wine then dusted with ground organic shiitake mushrooms, summer savory and black pepper.
The result is a beautiful cheese that offers piquant, earthy flavors balanced by high notes of orange blossom and apricot.
Chimney Rock is named for one of the most spectacular hikes in all of Point Reyes, located at the end of a land bridge that’s surrounded by lush meadows and cool breezes.”
Get this cheese from your local cheese shop! It’s a fan favorite from Cowgirl Creamery.
– Information from the Cowgirl Creamery Library of Cheese
“Each limited edition, handcrafted wheel features smoky chipotles mixed into the paste and a distinctive ribbon of Dick Taylor dark chocolate through the center.
You’ll also enjoy buttermilk and fresh cream, complemented with floral notes, herbaceous overtones, and a clean citrus finish.
As Humboldt Fog Chipotle Cacao Remix matures, the creamline develops and the flavor intensifies.” – Cypress Grove
You will love this limited edition remix. Visit your local cheese shop and try this new cheese from Cypress Grove.
The Cheese Trail is featured in the latest issue of Culture Magazine.
Linni Kral interviews Vivien Straus, the founder of The California Cheese Trail, on what inspired her to start the cheese trail and what exciting cheesemakers you will discover on your adventure.
You can read the interview in the latest printed copy of Culture Magazine as well as the online version of the article here!
Straus Home Ranch, where founder Vivien Straus grew up. Available for stays, farm tours, and weddings.
Quinta, a farmstead cheese, is a soft-ripened, bloomy rind cheese, inspired by the very famous, seasonally-made Vacherin Mont d’Or from Switzerland, near the border of France close to the mountain d’Or.
Made on the farm from the dairy’s own pasteurized cows’ milk, the wheel is wrapped in Spruce bark. You eat it by cutting off the top layer and scooping out the insides with a spoon.
“Why Quinta? This name is especially meaningful to the Giacomini family (the owners of Point Reyes Farmstead) for two reasons.
First, Quinta means Farmstead in Portuguese. Their maternal grandparents were from Portugal so this cheese honors their mother and their Ferreira family heritage.
Second, Quinta means Fifth in Spanish. This cheese just happens to be the fifth product in their core line-up, so, as the family tells, “the name also has significance for our primarily Latinx staff that work so hard (day-in-and-day-out) to make all of our cheeses wonderful.” – Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co
You can get your favorites like Rocky Butte, Big Sur and Paso Vino shipped directly to your home. Check out their new selections on their store!
Oakdale Cheese is also offering French bread, jams, mustards, olives, nuts, etc!
Their store is open everyday 9am to 6pm and they have a new take out window as well. Check their online shop for shipping and continue to support California cheese.
