Viseu, Portugal – Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co. achieved significant recognition this week at the prestigious World Cheese Awards held this year in Viseu, Portugal. The annual global cheese competition, organized in collaboration with the Guild of Fine Food, brought together 240 expert judges from 40 countries to evaluate over 4,000 cheeses from around the world.
The competition, renowned for its rigorous blind-tasting methodology, bestowed Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co. with multiple awards, highlighting the company’s commitment to exceptional cheesemaking. In a remarkable showing, the company’s diverse cheese portfolio was honored with four awards. TomaRashi along with the newest cheese in the product line, Fennel Blue, each earned Silver Awards, while TomaProvence and TomaTruffle were both awarded Bronze, demonstrating the breadth and quality of the company’s artisan cheese collection.
Kuba Hemmerling, Point Reyes’ VP of Operations, was thrilled with the news, “We’ve known our unique, flavored cheeses are super popular with consumers, as retailers tell us they have a hard time keeping up with demand, but to see such a prestigious panel of international critics also recognize these cheeses for quality, that is incredibly gratifying. I’m so appreciative to share this award with our entire creamery team.”
The cheeses were meticulously judged on critical criteria including rind and paste appearance, aroma, body, texture, and most importantly, flavor and mouthfeel.
The World Cheese Awards continues to be a crucial platform for celebrating international cheesemaking, promoting food tourism, and showcasing the rich cultural diversity of cheese production.
In 1959 Bob and Dean Giacomini established their sustainable dairy farm along Highway 1, just north of Point Reyes Station. In 2000, together with their daughters, the family began making cheese on the farm with milk from their own herd of Holsteins. In 2010, the family opened The Fork, a culinary and educational center, offering farm-to-table educational experiences for both consumers and the trade. Three of the Giacomini sisters, Diana, Lynn and Jill now own and run the WBENC-certified, 100% women-owned company that is recognized internationally as an award-winning producer of best-in-class, hand-crafted, artisan cheese. With production locations on the farm and in nearby Petaluma, the Point Reyes Farmstead product line contains Original Blue, Bay Blue, Fennel Blue, Toma, TomaProvence, TomaTruffle, TomaRashi, Gouda, Quinta and Truffle Brie. The product line is available nationally at independent cheese shops and specialty grocers, at The Fork, local-area farmers’ markets and online at www.pointreyescheese.com.
