Catapano Dairy Farm Fresh Chevre

One of the things I look forward to the most during the in spring and summer months is the abundance of fresh chevre that is available. The bright and creamy texture coupled with basil, heirloom tomatoes, and a grind of fresh black pepper… it doesn’t get much better than that in my book.

Conversely, there is a part of me that is always a little sad as we move into late fall and winter, the goats move into the barn, and that fantastic cheese is taken away for another year. 

Goats generally mate during the September and October months, and give birth to kids through April. Although the first few months of milk go to the kids, mothers can usually continue producing milk for the next six months, resulting in a somewhat finite period of time during which chevre and other goat’s milk cheese to be made. 

Fresh chevre is essentially the ultimate expression for seasonality in the cheese world. One of the finest examples of this is right on Long Island at Catapano Dairy Farm.

Located on the North Fork of Long Island, Catapano Dairy Farm has been making headlines since 2005 ever since their cheese won 1st place for chevre from the American Cheese Society, considered the most prestigious cheese competition in the country.

I was first introduced to the cheese a few years ago when my wife and I first started coming down to visit Lenn and Nena on Long Island. It was a revelation then, and continues to be the benchmark that I strive for every time I make fresh chevre at home.  T

he cheese has an incredibly moist and creamy texture with a slight scent of grass and flowers that you immediately associate with freshness and quality. What I like about this chevre is that it isn’t overwhelmingly "goaty."  What I mean by that is some goat’s milk cheeses can be so acidic and tangy on the backend that it can overwhelm some people to where they will swear off any cheese made with goat’s milk. The Catapano is incredibly mild and smooth with just a hint of the brightness on the end, and has converted several goat cheese haters into Catapano lovers. 

Put it on a cracker, put it in a salad, put it on a spoon…it’s that good…

As I sit and write this on a cool day near the end of summer, I am reminded once again that the spring and summer months are fleeting. Fresh chevre is only going to be made available for a little longer. Take advantage of it while you can. Catapano is a good place to start.

Comments

[Lenn Thompson]

Aaron: Thanks for the post. You know that I really enjoy this cheese -- especially in the stuffed squash blossoms Nena has made a few times this summer.

Also great with local sauvignon blanc -- think Shinn, Raphael, Channing Daughters and Paumanok....really really well done.

[Jared Skolnick]

As the current owner of their former property, I have a personal attachment to that cheese and adore it. And I can vouch for the skyrocketing popularity of it since the 2005 award. We bought the property from them that year - they moved in order to have more land and more goats so they could make more cheese. TO THIS DAY people still knock on our door asking where they can find the goats!