Sheep Industry News March 2024

a creamy, yet complex texture. It can be melted to top every thing from a bagel or toast to a baked potato or added to a cheese board. Other products include Spice of Life with Peppercorn, Forever Feta and Cacio Ovino. Rosemary and Thyme also produces five flavors of Sheep Chevre, a soft and creamy cheese that spreads like cream cheese and can be used on just about anything. “When we start milking, I make the fresh cheeses first because they are ready to go right away,” Hannah said. “Then I’ll make the hard cheeses and give them some time to age – which can vary from two to five months depending on the cheese. It’s fun making all of the different cheeses.” Early on, selling the cheeses took a bit more effort. “People would tell us they didn’t like goat cheese,” Han nah said. “So, we’d have to convince them to give sheep’s milk cheese a try. It’s different. But once they’ve had the cheese, we don’t have to work so hard to sell it.” THE SHEEP Once the property was ready to support the sheep and milking, Brent and Hannah set about building the flock. Half of the original flock were St. Croix sheep – a popular breed in

fry it up in a skillet so the customers can try it that way. It’s probably our best seller.” But it wasn’t the Tyri that won an award at the 2023 United States Cheese Championships. The company took second place in the hard sheep’s milk cheese category with its Don Quixote Queso and second place in the surface ripened sheep’s milk cheeses with its Tomme de Lafayette. “We took Georgia cheese to Wisconsin and came back with two awards,” Brent shared with pride. “We think that’s pretty good.” The Don Quixote Queso is a Manchego style cheese that has been aged to produce well-developed flavors with hints of both salty and sweet. It has a buttery texture with a basket weave rind. It can be shredded to top everything from salads to pasta, served on a cheese board or used to make a “high class” grilled cheese. The Tomme de LaFayette is a mild cheese that is aged for

March 2024 • Sheep Industry News • 21