Fiscalini Cheese

An American original with Swiss roots.

The year is 1886, when Mateo Fiscalini emigrates from Switzerland with his family. First finding work on the railroad, he eventually settles all the way west in Cambria, California.

In 1912, Mateo’s son, John Baptiste Fiscalini, a graduate from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, purchases 160 acres of land in Modesto. Two years later he starts a dairy farm with ten cows.

By 1995, two generations later, the Fiscalini farm has a large herd of Holstein cows. And in 2001, John Fiscalini, the grandson of John Baptiste, who has dreamt of making cheese, is introduced to Mariano Gonzalez, master cheddar-maker from Paraguay. Mariano develops a bandage-wrapped cheddar, sweeping up many awards, and giving British cheeses a run for their money.

Today, Fiscalini Cheese produces award-winning cheeses with the knowledge and spirit of four generations of family behind them. And, best of all, you can visit them.

Stop by their farm and creamery (yes, the cows are right there!) to pick up cheese in their front office. If you feel like making it a bigger cheese journey, Fiscalini can be just one of your stops on the Central Valley Cheese Loop #1.

This month you can find Fiscalini’s San Joaquin Gold on promotion at Whole Foods Market in Northern California. San Joaquin Gold is an Italian-style, semi-hard cheese made from raw cow’s milk. It is named after the beautiful San Joaquin valley where it is made.

Whole Foods Cheese Love

Springtime with warm picnic weather, graduations and family fun! Yes, bring on the cheese!  

We asked Chrissy, a certified cheese professional at Whole Foods Market (yes, those exist!) to share some of her favorite cheeses along the California Cheese Trail. Here are her top three picks:

San Joaquin Gold 

A farmstead cow’s milk cheese made in Modesto, California, by Fiscalini Farms. It’s a raw-milk cheese that uses microbial rennet, an ideal method for vegetarians. The cheese is reminiscent of parmesan — it’s nutty, salty and slightly sweet with a thin, natural rind. Pair this cheese with Rustic Bakery’s Organic Olive Oil on Sal Gris Flatbreads along with an IPA, and you will have the start of a beautiful picnic.

Chabis

The Laura Chenel Chabis, made in Sonoma County, is a creamy, delicate, flavorful goat-milk cheese with a slightly tart finish. It’s even vegetarian friendly! In 2018, the cheese won a Gold Medal at the California Exposition State Fair in the Fresh Goat Cheese category. For dessert, try pairing it with Charles Chocolates Candied Lemon and Hazelnut Bittersweet Chocolate. Paired together, they’re a perfect to end a meal. Consider your guests impressed.

Nicasio Square

A cow’s milk cheese, Nicasio Square is made by the Nicasio Valley Cheese Company. This cheese is a young version of a Taleggio and is washed in brine that imparts a garlicky bacon flavor. Pair this cheese with charcuterie and a hoppy beer for an extraordinary appetizer or spread generously on a baguette with a slice of Fra’ Mani Salametto. You truly cannot go wrong.

If you weren’t excited about cheese before, just a taste of one of these is likely to change your mind.  All locally sourced from Northern California, all cared for by the team at Whole Foods Market, they’re delicious and completely unique. Oh, and did we mention they’re on sale? Cheese platter dreams, realized.

Visit This Cheesemaker: Nicasio Valley Cheese Co.

As a Bay Area resident, there’s nothing like taking a drive out to the coast. As you head out towards Point Reyes from Petaluma or Marin, slip down a side road to find the only farmstead, organic cow cheesemaker in California, located in the one-block town of Nicasio, population 96.

There you’ll see St. Mary’s, a sweet church built in 1871, Rancho Nicasio, a restaurant with live music (they get some pretty hot bands) and Nicasio Valley Cheese Company, a tiny creamery & retail shop filled with yummy cheese and other goodies.

The Lafranchi family, originally from Maggia, Switzerland, dairy farmers in the U.S. for 3 generations, have the ONLY farmstead, certified-organic cow dairy making cheese in California.

Farmstead means that the cheese is made on the farm with milk from the farmer’s own herd (which is right down the road from the shop).

At their creamery, you can watch them make cheese through the floor to ceiling window (best during the week), sample each and every one of their cheese, and purchase cheese and other picnic items. Tomino and Locano are their latest creations. They’re gooey and absolutely fine. I’m especially in love with the Tomino, a washed-rind (it has a lot of flavor!) and their fresh Foggy Morning. But you’ll find your own favorite, of course.

The shop is open 7 days a week, 10-5.  Nicasio Valley Cheese Company is on the Marin County Cheese Trail, just a short jaunt off the Point Reyes Petaluma Road or, coming from the other side:  Sir Francis Drake or Lucas Valley Road.

Hidden Cheesemakers

I’m a sucker for visiting farms and cheesemakers. So, I jumped at a full day Central Coast cheese tour with
FARMstead ED.

First stop was Central Coast Creamery in Paso Robles, where Reggie Jones, owner and cheesemaker, took us for a tour.  He led us through his immaculately laid out new creamery and we sampled his full line of cheeses made with goat, sheep and cow’s milk. His Holey Cow is the only Swiss cheese made in California. It doesn’t taste like one of those rubbery swiss cheeses I’ve disliked my whole life.  It’s amazing and creamy! He told us the cows that provide this milk eat a truckload of carrots each day, which is why the cheese is so yellow.Central Coast Aging Room

Dog at StepladderOnce we left, the bus turned off coastal Highway 1, onto a road no one would take unless they had a reason. The bus driver drove at a pace reserved for turtles, up small hills (more like bumps) and around corners, along a five-mile road. We could see nothing ahead, until we came to the opening that is Stepladder Creamery.  If I lived there, I’d probably be too lazy to ever leave.

Jack Rudolf, the grandson of the owner, greeted us amidst a charming cluster of vintage barns. The compound was both quiet and filled with projects. In exchange for managing the ranch, Jack raises his goats and makes cheese in a creamery he’s built inside the historic barn. You can’t even tell from the outside that it even exists.  The farm also has beehives, producing, honestly the best honey I’ve eaten in a long time, plus passion fruit and avocados.  Everyone was allowed to play with the kids (baby goats). Then lunch made by a local caterer was served.

Like many goat and sheep farms, they have their guardian dog, who makes his home with the animals.

Our final stop was Rinconada Dairy where we watched the goats being milked, gazed at huge sheep and sampled cheese and wine from Seven Oxen. Sadly, I’ve recently heard that they’ve stopped making cheese since our visit. But as far as I know, they’ll continue to milk their goats for other cheesemakers.

It was a great day. Check Central Coast Creamery and Stepladder Creamery profiles for tour options.  And FarmsteadEd also provides all sorts of tours. It was a fun day!