It is with great pride that I’m happy to report that the Australian Specialist Cheesemakers Association (ASCA) Cheese Showcase this weekend was the best cheese party I’ve been to since Adam Moskovitz’ acclaimed Cheesemonger Invitational in NYC!
Wow how the industry has come of age! And wow…how many people really do love cheese! We had over 700 people attend the event held within the beautiful art deco surrounds of Ormond Hall in Melbourne. The number of people attending is the best vote of confidence in the Australian industry that our cheesemakers (and butter maker!) could ask for. As an organiser of this event, the numbers attending, way exceeded our expectations – however while it was busy at times, I’d like to praise our cheesemakers for the way they handled the record numbers attending this event – only one cheesemaker ran out of cheese!
Those who know me well, know that I am passionate about seeing collaboration and camaraderie between members of our cheese community and it was so great to see so many cheesemakers, retailers, distributors and cheese-loving people working together at the event to achieve a greater good. I have a good feeling about the future of our local industry.
This years focus on education was hit. Brandy the Cow and our friends from Animals on The Move – were much loved by kids and adults alike and the fresh butter made on site was some of the best I’ve tasted. The classes went down a treat, with seats filling up a good 20 minutes before the classes were due to start.
Giorgio from That’s Amore teaching us about mozzarella!
Ashley Church from Say Cheese took us on a journey into the world of affinage; Our fabulous friends from Rooftop Honey, Mat and Vanessa, paired up with Cheesemonger Anthony Femia to match local cheeses with local honey; Giorgio Linguanti from That’s Amore had the crowds salivating as he hand stretched mozzarella; and Angelina from Tea and Sympathy and yours truly, well and truly convinced the masses that tea and cheese works! Better yet – the cheesemakers reported that the crowds in the main hall didn’t just want to gorge on free samples– they wanted to engage with them and learn about cheese and what they do!
For more information about the Australian Specialist Cheesemakers Association please check out their website and sign up to the newsletter – changes are continuing to take place to make the association a truly representative industry body!
A big thank you again to the sponsors of the event:
- Calendar Cheese Company
To our Education Partners:
And to all those who exhibited at the event:
- Jindi
- Jannei
