U.S. Championship Cheese Contest Reveals Top 20 Finalists

Out of 2,249 entries in the 2023 United States Championship Cheese Contest, just 20 cheeses remain in the hunt for the title: U.S. Champion Cheese.  Over the past two days in Green Bay, Wisconsin, a team of 42 elite cheese judges have evaluated entries from 35 states based on their technical merits, including flavor, texture, appearance, and taste. 

The Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association, the Contest host organization, is now pleased to announce – by order of class number - the names and makers of the cheeses being judged for the top prize. 

Class 2: Cheddar, Medium (Three to Six Months) 
Cheese Name: Cheddar 
Maker: Dillon Sylla 
Company: Associated Milk Producers Inc. 
Location: Blair, Wisconsin 

Class 4: Cheddar, Aged One to Two Years 
Cheese Name: Cracker Barrel Aged Reserve Cheddar 
Maker: Manufactured by Agropur - Weyauwega 
Company: Lactalis Heritage Dairy 
Location: Weyauwega, Wisconsin 

Class 6: Traditional Waxed Cheddar, Mild to Medium 
Cheese Name: Roelli Haus Select Cheddar 
Maker: Team Roelli 
Company: Roelli Cheese 
Location: Shullsburg, Wisconsin 

Class 8: Natural Rinded Cheddar 
Cheese Name: Lucky Linda Clothbound Cheddar 
Maker: Redhead Creamery 
Company: Redhead Creamery 
Location: Brooten, Minnesota 

Class 12: Baby Swiss Style 
Cheese Name: Baby Swiss Wheel, Rindless 
Maker: DV Team 2 
Company: Guggisberg Cheese 
Location: Millersburg, Ohio 

Class 13: Swiss Style Cheese 
Cheese Name: Founder 56 Emmentaler Swiss 
Maker: James Yoder 
Company: Rothenbuhler Cheesemakers 
Location: Middlefield, Ohio

Class 19: Provolone, Mild 
Cheese Name: Mild Provolone Cheese 
Maker: Cuba Team 3 
Company: Great Lakes Cheese 
Location: Cuba, New York 

Class 23: Parmesan 
Cheese Name: Organic Copper Kettle Parmesan 
Maker: Team Lake Country Dairy 
Company: Schuman Cheese 
Location: Turtle Lake, Wisconsin 

Class 38: Gouda, Aged 
Cheese Name: Europa 
Maker: Arethusa Cheese Team 
Company: Arethusa Farm Dairy 
Location: Bantam, Connecticut 

Class 45: Washed Rind/Smear Ripened Semi-soft Cheeses 
Cheese Name: Whitney 
Maker: Jasper Hill Farm 
Company: Jasper Hill Farm 
Location: Greensboro Bend, Vermont 

Class 47: Pepper Flavored Monterey Jack, Mild Heat 
Cheese Name: Pepper Jack 
Maker: Juan Torres 
Company: Glanbia Nutritionals 
Location: Twin Falls, Idaho 

Class 48: Pepper Flavored Monterey Jack, Medium Heat 
Cheese Name: Ghost Pepper Jack 
Maker: Jim Falls Cheese Team 
Company: Associated Milk Producers Inc. 
Location: Jim Falls, Wisconsin 

Class 54: Open Class: Semi-soft Cheeses 
Cheese Name: Cello Fontal 
Maker: Lake Country Dairy 
Company: Schuman Cheese 
Location: Turtle Lake, Wisconsin 

Class 55: Open Class: Hard Cheeses 
Cheese Name: Vintage Cupola American Original Cheese 
Maker: Team Door Artisan Cheese Company 
Company: Red Barn Family Farms 
Location: Egg Harbor, Wisconsin 

Class 56: Open Class: Cheeses with Natural Rind 
Cheese Name: St. Malachi 
Maker: Team Doe Run 
Company: The Farm at Doe Run 
Location: Coatesville, Pennsylvania 

Class 59: Open Class: Hard Cheeses, Flavored 
Cheese Name: Rumiano Pepato Dry Jack 
Maker: Rumiano Cheese 
Company: Rumiano Cheese 
Location: Crescent City, California 

Class 77: Hard Goat’s Milk Cheeses 
Cheese Name: Hootenanny 
Maker: Goat Rodeo Team 
Company: Goat Rodeo Farm & Dairy 
Location: Allison Park, Pennsylvania 

Class 83: Hard Sheep’s Milk Cheeses 
Cheese Name: Sweet Annie 
Maker: Landmark Creamery 
Company: Landmark Creamery 
Location: Belleville, Wisconsin 

Class 86: Soft & Semi-soft Mixed Milk Cheeses 
Cheese Name: Breezy Blue 
Maker: Kingston Cheese Team 
Company: Kingston Creamery 
Location: Cambria, Wisconsin 

Class 88: Hard Mixed Milk Cheeses 
Cheese Name: Wegmans Three Milk Gouda 
Maker: Todd Pontius 
Company: Old Chatham Creamery 
Location: Groton, New York 

A complete list of gold, silver, and bronze medalists by class is available now at USChampionCheese.org. 

The 2023 U.S. Championship Cheese Contest winner will be named via livestream at USChampionCheese.org at 2:00 p.m. (CT) on Thursday, February 23. 

The U.S. Championship Cheese Contest, initiated in 1981, is the nation’s premier technical cheese, butter, and yogurt competition and this year marks the 21st biennial edition.