Cheese of the Day: Cypress Grove Lamb Chopper

"Aged Sheep Milk Cheese Made Exclusively For Cypress Grove in Holland"

Image by Cypress Grove via their Facebook.

Buttery, nutty, subtly-sweet, meet Lamb Chopper!

Cypress Grove's only sheep's milk cheese, Lamb Chopper is aged for at least three months and has a nutty and slightly sweet flavor with of notes of butter and cream. Because of the higher fat content of sheep's milk, Lamb Chopper has a buttery smooth texture which makes it super meltable.

Lamb Chopper is made even more delicious with pairings such as IPA, Porter, Sauvignon Blanc and Vouvray.

Why is Lamb Chopper produced in Holland and not in California like the rest of Cypress Grove's cheeses? Founder Mary Keehn befriended a Dutch cheese maker at the New York Fancy Food show over 20 years ago. Mary was impressed by the cheesemaker's herd of healthy, happy goats and tasty cheese, and eventually began working with the cheesemaker to develop goat and sheep's milk cheeses. At the time, sheep's milk supply was very limited in the United States so Mary made the decision to import Cypress Grove's very first sheep's milk cheese from her friend's cheese company in Holland. Lamb Chopper (and Midnight Moon) is crafted in Holland by these master cheesemakers to this day.

In the 1970s, Cypress Grover founder Mary Keehn was in search of healthy milk for her kids in a world where processed, pre-packaged food was the norm. Her neighbor had goats to control brush, and, with the permission of the neighbor, Mary was able to catch two goats to have for herself. These two goats, Esmeralda and Hazel, were the first of many goats that Mary would adopt. The herd produced a lot of milk, and therefore Mary decided to try making cheese. Mary officially opened Cypress Grove in 1983. Today, Cypress Grove has a large range of goat cheeses, from fresh chevre to aged, Gouda-like cheeses.