{"id":5273,"date":"2025-09-18T03:02:01","date_gmt":"2025-09-18T03:02:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/5-great-cheesemakers-from-maine\/"},"modified":"2025-09-18T03:02:01","modified_gmt":"2025-09-18T03:02:01","slug":"5-great-cheesemakers-from-maine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/tr\/5-great-cheesemakers-from-maine\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Great Cheesemakers from Maine"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
<\/p>\n

\"\"

\n

Amy Rowbottom at her retail shop<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Planning a trip to Maine? According to the Maine Cheese Guild<\/a>, there are more than 80 licensed cheesemakers, many of whom have farmstead operations or source their milk locally, and most only sell directly from their farms and at farmers’ markets.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Amy Rowbottom, founder and head cheesemaker at Crooked Face Creamery<\/a> started out running a farmstead operation but in 2019 she opened a retail store. Today, in addition to making and selling her own cheese, she also sells cheese from many producers in Maine. We spoke to Rowbottom to find out more about her favorite Maine cheesemakers and some of their best cheeses.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fuzzy Udder Creamery<\/a><\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n

\"\"

\n

Waldo Smog photo credit Fuzzy Udder<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Located in Whitefield about an hour northeast of Portland, these cheesemakers create fresh, soft-ripened and aged cheeses made from locally produced sheep, goat and cow\u2019s milk.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Owners Jacqui and Michael Segura spent most of their careers working in tech, but pivoted to cheesemaking when he learned that the creamery was up for sale in January 2024. (The O.G. founder Jessie Dowling also changed tacks, transitioning full-time to the horse biz).\u00a0<\/p>\n

The pair didn\u2019t just take over, they essentially rebooted Fuzzy Udder, using their tech savvy to bring their artisanal cheeses to (more of) the masses. Currently, they are available in 40+ stores in Maine and a handful of restaurants, but they plan to move into larger chain stores in-state and eventually beyond, this year. One thing they don\u2019t plan to do is scale up to the point that they need to mechanize or transition from the hand-crafted care of their products from milk to fully ripened cheese.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Rowbottom dubs their Waldo Smog Maine\u2019s answer to the iconic Humboldt Fog, a cow\u2019s milk cheese with a layer of ash that ripens from the outside. \u201cA lot of their cheeses smack of place, and they\u2019re really fun and creative,\u201d she says. \u201cI also love their Polar Vortex, which reminds me of a Maine winter. Fierce, strong, sharp, earthy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Springdale Farm and Creamery<\/a><\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n

\"\"

\n

Cheese gift box photo credit Springdale Farm and Creamery<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When you picture a Maine cheesemaker, Springdale Farm may hew close to whatever you\u2019re envisioning. The fourth-generation dairy farm does more than raise cows to make cheese. They milk 120 registered Jersey and Guernsey cows on 350 acres, and they also market dairy heifers, beef and pork. Of the farm acreage, 120 is permanent pasture and 140 is hay and alfalfa, with other being part-pasture, part hay.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Rowbottom buys Springdale\u2019s milk for her cheese, and they collaborate on cheeses. A fun one to try is the Glen Cove Gouda, Springdale\u2019s playful take on baby Gouda. Buttery,\u00a0 sweet and nutty, with a hint of smoke.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Balfour Farm<\/a><\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n

\"\"

\n

Pine Tree Parmesan photo credit Balfour Farm<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Since 2006 Heather and Doug Donahue have farmed organically on 100 acres. Their approach goes beyond chemical-free inputs to encompass a holistic approach to taking care of animals, the land and their customers. Nothing is produced with pesticides, herbicides, food colorings or additives. In addition to working with only Normande cows who begin their lives on the farm, they only milk their cows once a day, and use 90% of their electricity from solar power.<\/p>\n

The farm will stay \u201cas is\u201d forever, thanks to their Forever Farm status with Maine Farmland Trust<\/a>. (Forever Farms have been permanently protected for agricultural use, which means even if it changes ownership, it will always be a farm).\u00a0<\/p>\n

In Maine, especially at a farmstead creamery like Balfour, low-fat milk is simply not done\u2014even in cheeses where it\u2019s the norm. Balfour\u2019s Pine Tree<\/a> Parmesan is made with whole milk, instead of the oft-utilized skim, making it both softer and tastier than its less opulent cohorts. It\u2019s a Parmesan that can stand up to pasta, or February.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lakin’s Gorges Cheese<\/a>\u00a0<\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n

\"\"

\n

Jig cheese photo credit Lakin’s Gorges<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\n

Allison Lakin launched Lakin’s Gorges Cheese in 2011, and met her partner in life, Neal Foley, at a pig roast four years later. The trained farmer and chef persuaded her, first into getting her own cows, and then marrying him in 2017. Today, they produce farmstead cheese, with a side of pork and beef. The operation is full circle: the pigs eat whey leftover from the cheesemaking operation, which produces 13 types of cheese from soft and fresh to ripe and bloomy to aged and hard.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The Jig<\/span><\/a> is a bloomy rind cheese that even the most funk-averse can get behind. Fantastically lush and ripe texture, a one-serving round finished in three bites. Throw some sugar on top, torch it, and you\u2019ve got a party.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Crooked Face Creamery<\/a><\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n

\"\"

\n

Applewood Smoked Ricotta photo credit Crooked Face Creamery<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Rowbottom is a farmer by heritage and a cheesemaker by choice. She was raised in Skowhegan Maine surrounded by rolling farmland. She aims to create the best cheese she can from locally raised, pasture-farmed cows. And while Rowbottom is the first to admit that ricotta is a tough sell to hardcore cheese lovers, she takes real pride in converting them to her ricotta\u2014once she gets them to try it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAt markets, I started selling it as fresh cheese because ricotta just turned people off,\u201d she admits. \u201cBut now more people know about it, so it\u2019s not an issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Crooked Face\u2019s Applewood Cold Smoke Ricotta <\/a>is a thumb in the eye to tepid, watered-down Ricotta haters everywhere. Made from whole milk and cold-smoked over organic locally sourced applewood, it\u2019s creamy, piquant, just salty enough, but ephemerally light. The smoke is a nice touch, and it doesn\u2019t overwhelm.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Maine cheese is still tough to come by for non-locals. Producers like Crooked Face, Lakins Gorges and Balfour do ship their wares, but distribution remains challenging. The best way to taste the terroir is in person. Hit the biggest cheese trail<\/a> in Maine, or hit the Maine Cheese Festival<\/a> for a sampling of some the most audacious, fun-loving, well-crafted cheeses you\u2019ve never heard of.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Read more<\/h2>\n