MONROE — Those long lines for fried cheese curds at Cheese Days every time the summer festival is held might have given it away, but Green County — and this part of the state — make some of the very best cheese in the world.
For proof, look no further than the World Championship Cheese Contest, where Decatur Dairy in Brodhead this year has been judged “best in class” for its muenster cheese curds, joining a number of area dairies and cheesemaking operations to be named top winners in 2022.
And when it comes to cheese, the cheese championships, held every other year in Madison, is the premiere technical competition for all things cheese, butter and yogurt, with nearly 3,000 entries hailing from 29 nations and across the United States.
This year’s event, which some have dubbed “the cheese Olympics,” ran from Tuesday to Thursday at the Monona Terrace Convention Center in the state’s capital; and Wisconsin entries dominated the domestic competition, in which there are more than 140 separate categories.
“The competition is extremely tough and you just never know how you might do,” said Chris Roelli of Roelli Cheese in Lafayette County. “You are competing against the best cheese from all over the world, not just in the United States.”
Judges grade the entrants across classes to determine the very best cheese using a system of not only taste-testing, but technical scoring; and even smelling and feeling the cheese. It’s equal parts art and science, cheesemakers say.
And while it might seem a little cheesy to someone not from the area or familiar with the state’s dairy industry, the contest is serious business.
“That’s really good news to hear,” said Steve Buholzer of Klondike Cheese in Monroe, upon being notified that his company’s Odyssey Lowfat Feta Cheese, had won top honors in its class. “That’s why we enter the contest, to try and win it.”
Cheese curds were previously judged in a separate category but a new category — for flavored and unflavored curds — was rolled out for the 2022 competition.
Meanwhile, Roelli Cheese took home the top award in the class for a blue molding variety, known as Red Rock. It’s a cheese Roelli said he has been making for some time and a variety that has a “good pedigree” to it. In the past, he has won awards for his Alpine Cheese, among other varieties.
He has plenty of company among local cheesemakers over the years.
“Green County and Lafayette always do very well in this competition, and it’s not by accident,” said Roelli. “We put a lot of work into our cheese in this area.”
The grand champion of the competition was Michael Spycher, Mountain Dairy Fritzenhaus, of Gourmino AG Langau, Bern Canton in Switzerland, with Gourmino Le Gruyère AOP, which had a final score of 98.423.
For all local award winners, see Page A7.