Why is Wisconsin so important in the dairy industry? If you ask Dean Sommer MS’81, he can tell you about its climate, topography, and cheesemaking history. But it’ll all come down to one word: people — specifically, those who’ve spent generations perfecting the science and art of cheese. Sommer is one of those people, and he doesn’t just know cheese; he understands it.
As a cheese technologist at the UW Center for Dairy Research, Sommer teaches short courses for industry professionals, evaluates applicants for the highly competitive Wisconsin Master Cheesemaker Program, and consults with manufacturers to create new cheeses and troubleshoot taste, texture, and meltability issues in existing products. Through decades of experience in the dairy industry, Sommer has accumulated knowledge on not only the process of cheesemaking but also the history of it.
Sommer presented “How Wisconsin Became the Cheese State” during a 175th Anniversary State Tour stop as part of Badger Talks’ Taste of Wisconsin speaker series. The talk covered everything from the wheat crop failure that led European immigrants to transition the state’s agricultural landscape towards dairy in the mid-1800s to how UW–Madison continues to support and innovate the dairy industry worldwide. “Dairy and cheesemaking are so important to Wisconsin’s history and present-day economy,” says Sommer.
But if audiences aren’t captivated by facts like “Wisconsin would rank fourth globally in cheese production if it were a country” or the dairy industry’s annual $46 billion economic impact in the state, they’re certainly drawn to Sommer’s table of samples.
Here, he shares a few cheeses he likes to bring to his tasting table, including his favorite cheese.
Colby Cheese (Henning’s Wisconsin Cheese in Kiel, Wisconsin)
“Colby cheese was invented in Wisconsin, and Henning’s makes a really good, traditionally made one.”
MontAmoré (Sartori Cheese in Plymouth, Wisconsin)
“It’s a sweet cheddar. What’s a sweet cheddar? A combination of aged cheddar and aged parmesan. They make it using starter cultures and bacterial cultures that typically are used for aged cheddar but are also used for aged parmesan. So, you end up with a cheese that combines the flavors of both, which is very interesting.”
Espresso Mascarpone (BelGioioso Cheese in Green Bay) and Chocolate Mascarpone (Crave Brothers Farmstead Cheese in Waterloo, Wisconsin)
“Another cheese that people tend to really ’ooh’ and ’aah’ over is flavored mascarpone, a soft, spreadable cheese made from cream. There’s traditional mascarpone, but BelGioioso also makes an espresso-flavored one and Crave Brothers makes a chocolate-flavored one. People go crazy for them. They’re like, ’Where did you get that? Where can I get that?’ ”
Juusto (Pasture Pride Cheese in Cashton, Wisconsin)
“Juustoleipä is sort of the national cheese of Finland and literally translates to ’cheese bread.’ It looks like a piece of French toast and is made in such a fashion that even with heat, it doesn’t melt and flow to become all messy. You can put it in a microwave or even a frying pan and fry it up and it doesn’t distort, it just tastes really nice and buttery and milky and salty. Everyone always says, ’Wow, we’ve never had anything like that before.’ ”
Sharp Yellow Cheddar Cheese Aged over 18 Months (Henning’s Wisconsin Cheese in Kiel, Wisconsin)
"I have a lot of personal favorites, but if you absolutely made me just eat one cheese, I’d probably pick aged cheddar. Henning’s 18-month cheddar cheese is one of my very favorites."
Haven’t had your fill yet? Learn more about other Wisconsin food industries like meat and wine at upcoming tour stops.
