MADISON, Wisc. — Two local cheesemakers took top spots at the 35th biennial World Championship Cheese Contest, held March 5-7 in Wisconsin.
Pearl Valley Cheese, of Fresno, Ohio, took first and second place in the Rindless Style Swiss Cheese category with its Swiss cheese, with a score of 98.5 and 98.2, respectively.
Guggisberg Cheese’s Ziller was awarded the top two spots in the Baby Swiss category, taking first with a score of 99.4, as well as second place with a score of 98.25. Guggisberg Cheese is based in Sugarcreek, Ohio. Ziller was also named a top 20 finalist for the World Champion Cheese title.
Guggisberg Smoked Swiss also received first place in the Open Smoked Hard Cheeses category with a score of 99.45, and was in the final round of top-100 cheeses.
Pearl Valley is still located in the tiny northeast corner of Coshocton County known as Pearl where Ernest and Gertrude Stalder began making cheese in a single copper kettle in 1928. The family’s second generation of cheesemakers was led by John and Grace Stalder, who remain a strong presence, led the company from the 1960’s to the 1990’s. In the 1990’s, John and Grace’s son-in-law and daughter, Chuck and Sally Ellis along, with many other sibling family members grew the company.
Guggisberg Cheese was founded in 1950 in Millersburg, Ohio, by Swiss immigrant Alfred Guggisberg, who would later develop a new style of Swiss cheese called Baby Swiss with smaller holes and a creamier taste. Alfred’s son Richard took over leadership of the company in 1985 and purchased a new facility in Sugarcreek, Ohio.
The contest. The World Championship Cheese Contest is the world’s largest technical cheese, butter and yogurt competition, hosted by the Wisconsin Cheesemakers Association. The contest takes place every other year, alternating annually with the U.S. Cheese Championship.
Entries are divided into classes and then judged on a scale ranging from one to one hundred by some of the field’s finest professors. The top three scores in each category are recognized for their excellence, with the top spot receiving the title of World Champion.
This year, more than 400 dairy manufacturers from 25 countries and 32 American states, submitted over 3,300 entries in 85 different judging classes to vie for the title of World Champion.
This year’s judging panel consisted of international industry experts from all over the world, whose professions include cheese graders, cheese buyers, dairy science professors and researchers. An international panel of expert dairy judges evaluated the entries based on appearance, texture, consistency, eye formation, and of course, flavor.
For more information, visit www.worldchampioncheese.org.
