...don't make, don't sell...what do you do?

I had an interesting discussion with my friend and colleague Sasha the other day about what exactly it is we "do". We don't make cheese. We're not retailers. Though I started my cheese career behind the counter and she recently relaunched a Portland cheese shop, we're not really cheesemongers by vocation.

We both volunteer many, many hours on behalf of our professional organization, the American Cheese Society (ACS), and have witnessed the growth and maturation of our industry, working in creative pursuits that promote and educate about cheese. It's a nebulous thing neither of us is quite certain how to explain on a conference badge.

It's indicative of an industry in growth mode. Someday titles for those of us out there who sing the praises of fermented milk will be commonplace. For now, I just embrace the disparate elements of my "job".

I'll admit it, I'm a dabbler. I write about and promote cheese awareness. I produce video, create recipes and do food photography, but there's no one grand vision. I serve as Vice President of the American Cheese Society and cobble together a string of projects that supports me and, hopefully, grows an appreciation for artisan and specialty cheese.

In my busy life as a wife and mother to two boys, now living in a less-than-cheese-centric region, it's difficult to convey what I do to my friends or my family for that matter. Consequently, it's hard for me to appreciate the big picture, too.

It has occurred to me that a blog detailing my life in cheese might be just the thing to do, giving me a place to celebrate a delicious new recipe, my latest cheese find or the completion of a video project. A place where I can cover the exciting things afoot with the cheesemakers I work with, trips to regional festivals and news on the national and international cheese scene.

I hope it also brings an opportunity to connect with and grow a local (Phoenix/Scottsdale) cheese scene. Cheese Club of Scottsdale, anyone?!?

So this, then, will be the place I can point to and say, this...this is what I do. Check back often for: articles including the "Cheese In Depth" series, videos including "On Location" and "Meet Your Maker" vignettes, seasonal, cheese-centric recipes and other cheesy gab. Drop me a line if you have cheesy questions, too! Hope you enjoy!

On Location: Oregon Cheese Festival

The 6th Annual Oregon Cheese Festival was a blast! Check out this "Cheese Chick: On Location!" segment and plan to attend the 7th Annual Festival, Saturday, March 20, 2011.




It turns out the Mad Hatter, Dormouse and March Hare are also fans of Oregon Cheese. Some fun outtakes, below!

The Spring Festivals Oregon & California

So excited about the next few weeks. The Oregon Cheese Festival followed by the California Artisan Cheese Festival. Filming "Cheese Chick: On Location" segments and begin work on the Meet Your Maker series.

This is the unofficial launch of my new blog/vlog, a general reporting of the incredible world of artisan and specialty cheese. It will include video, recipes, articles and reporting from cheese-centric happenings.

I am eager to share the stories that take the cheese-curious behind the rind: from the dairy to the make room and aging caves, to the cheesemongers and experts who connect the cheese to the consumer.

After a drifting decade in my 20's, I am thankful that my unique set of life-experiences and interests (cooking, travel, history & culture, screen(writing) and film, eco-consciousness and, of course, a lifelong love of cheese) have finally coalesced around something! (I was beginning to wonder ; )

I am unbelievably grateful to have been invited into this fascinating subculture of individuals who comprise a collegial, creative and dynamic industry. I am proud to call so many talented, passionate people friends and colleagues and find what we are creating together to be infinitely wonderful!