May 28 , 2025, 10 am - 4 pm - 1 Day - Learn the basics of goat cheese. We will make chèvre (a French style of fresh goat cheese), and many of its variations, as well as feta. We’ll discuss how goat milk is different from other milks, and why certain cheeses are better made with goat milk. Basic use of ripening cultures and rennet and milk chemistry will be covered. Do you have goats and want to make cheese? Are you thinking of getting goats? We can help! -$150/person - Sign up and learn more here.
Presented by Capercaillie Consulting/Appleton Creamery
June 18 & 19, 2025 – 10 Am. - 4 pm - Two Days. A hands-on workshop in basic home cheese making. In this two-day workshop we’ll be using simple equipment you may already have at home to make a jack cheese the first day, press overnight, then finish the second. In addition, we will also make feta, yogurt, a lactic cheese, quick mozzarella, and ricotta, depending on the interests of the class. This workshop will concentrate on basic cow cheeses using Springdale Farm cow milk but will also delve briefly into goat cheese. Basic use of ripening cultures and rennet and milk chemistry will be covered. You will go home with cheese that you’ve made! $300 , $500/couple – Learn more and sign up here.
June 25 & 2610 am. – 4 p, 10 am. – 1:00 pm (half day). – In this day-and-a-half class, we will spend the first day making one hard cheese, but along the way we’ll discuss the different steps that go into making a hard cheese, and how a slight change here or there will result in a totally different cheese. We’ll discuss the differences between milks, starter cultures, rennet, pH, aging and rind development. We will press it overnight, then finish the next morning. Fee: $200 – Learn more and Sign up here.
July 2, 2025 – 10 am to 4 pm . 1 day - In this class, we will make feta and a soft cheese in the morning, and we will then marinate in olive oil in jars in the afternoon. If time, we will also make cheese balls.We will have some jars for the class. If you have any special ones at home, bring them! Pint size, wide-mouth is best. Bring an apron, hair covering, and lunch, as well as a fancy jar or two to fill.$150 - Sign up and learn more here.
July 9, 2025 – 10 am - 4Pm. - 1day Mozzarella and Ricotta are two iconic cheeses of Italy, and so easy to make! You will learn how to make both in this hands-on class, and go home with cheese you have made! $100/person. Learn more and sign up here.
Our 2024 Maine Cheese Festival Sponsors,
Culture Magazine
Platinum Sponsor
Pineland Farms Dairy
Maine Dept of Agriculture (ACF)
Silver Sponsor
Five-County-Credit Union
Sliver Sponsor
Yelp
Pack Edge
Cheesemaker Sponsor
Poland Srping
Formaticum
Boplster's
Maine Farmland Trust
Austin Associates
The Cheese Iron
Balfour Farm &Little Cheese Shop
Portland Food Co-Op
Fred Knight
Page & Pedersen
Dairy Connection
Maine Dairy Promotion Board
Stone Tree Farm Cidery
Fiore Artisan Olive Oil & Vinegar
Balfour Farm
The Maine Cheese Guild c/o Jean Koons, Treasurer 795 Pond Rd. Sidney, ME 04330
For more information contact:
Irene Burgess, Executive Director, Maine Cheese Guild207-419-9175 • Email director@mainecheeseguild.org