{"id":27071,"date":"2016-05-16T15:57:51","date_gmt":"2016-05-16T19:57:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/?p=27071"},"modified":"2021-08-26T13:34:23","modified_gmt":"2021-08-26T17:34:23","slug":"centerfold-cheese-cowgirl-creamery-st-pat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/centerfold-cheese-cowgirl-creamery-st-pat\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet the Cheese: Cowgirl Creamery&#8217;s St Pat"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Springtime comes early in Marin and Sonoma counties. February in this part of Northern California typically ushers in rain and warm temperatures, keeping grassy pastures bright green and signaling the wild mustard and chicory to bloom. Nettles \u201cas big as your hand\u201d sprout beneath the redwoods and in creek beds along the coast, says <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cowgirlcreamery.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Cowgirl Creamery<\/a> lead cheesemaker Eric Patterson.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s only fitting, then, that leaves from the large plant are wrapped around Cowgirl Creamery\u2019s springtime Jersey cow\u2019s milk round, <a href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/cheese-library\/St-Pat\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">St Pat<\/a> (one of the company\u2019s four seasonal cheeses). The Point Reyes\u2013based creamery, best known for its triple-cream <a href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/cheese-library\/Mt-Tam\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Mt. Tam<\/a> and washed-rind <a href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/cheese-library\/Mt-Tam\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Red Hawk<\/a>, turns out 338,000 pounds of cheese per year\u20141,300 of which are nettle-encased St Pat. Like the other seasonal wheels, it\u2019s on the market for roughly three months before the weather changes and the next one gets a go.<\/p>\n<div style=\"float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: -8px;\">\n<div id=\"attachment_27078\" style=\"width: 260px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/CowgirlCreamery_PeggySmith-SueConley_sidebar2.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-27078\" class=\"size-full wp-image-27078\" src=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/CowgirlCreamery_PeggySmith-SueConley_sidebar2.jpg\" alt=\"Cowgirl Creamery founders Peggy Smith and Sue Conley\" width=\"250\" height=\"319\" srcset=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/CowgirlCreamery_PeggySmith-SueConley_sidebar2.jpg 250w, https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/CowgirlCreamery_PeggySmith-SueConley_sidebar2-235x300.jpg 235w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 250px) 100vw, 250px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-27078\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>Cowgirl Creamery founders Peggy Smith and Sue Conley<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>These cheeses have the same base, but are wrapped in or dusted with ingredients that speak to the landscape and the time of year\u2014shiitake mushrooms, summer savory, and black pepper in fall; field flowers, chamomile, calendula, and Thai basil in summer; and ground heirloom peppers in winter.<\/p>\n<p>The recipes reflect the local ethos that has always guided Cowgirl Creamery founders, Sue Conley and Peggy Smith (from Maryland and Virginia, respectively). The University of Tennessee alums set out for the West Coast upon graduation and haven\u2019t looked back. From their arrival in 1976 and into the 1990s, they built careers in two pillars of the Bay Area food world: Smith as a cook and manager at Berkeley\u2019s legendary <a href=\"http:\/\/www.chezpanisse.com\/reservations\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Chez Panisse<\/a> and Conley as a co-owner of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bettesdiner.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bette\u2019s Oceanview Diner<\/a>, also in Berkeley.<\/p>\n<p>In 1989, after 11 years at the diner, Conley moved north to Point Reyes in search of a slower pace. She immersed herself in the area\u2019s budding organic farming scene and started building relationships that led her to found <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cowgirlcreamery.com\/wholesale\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tomales Bay Foods<\/a>\u2014the food marketing and distribution arm of Cowgirl Creamery\u2014in 1994.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_cheese.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-27077\" src=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_cheese.jpg\" alt=\"SPR16_centerfold_cheese\" width=\"750\" height=\"1132\" srcset=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_cheese.jpg 750w, https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_cheese-199x300.jpg 199w, https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_cheese-678x1024.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>Cow Country Revival<\/h3>\n<p>Just over the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco, Marin and Sonoma counties have long been cow country. Dairying was an early economic engine in the area during the Gold Rush in the mid-1800s. In the 1860s the windswept Point Reyes peninsula was the country\u2019s top dairy region, providing booming San Francisco with milk, butter, and cheese, according to the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.realcaliforniamilk.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">California Milk Advisory Board<\/a>. The climate is damp and mild\u2014perfect for pasture and, in turn, grass-munching animals. \u201cIf there isn\u2019t rain, there\u2019s fog,\u201d Conley says.<\/p>\n<p>Over the years, though, as California continued to establish itself as one of the country\u2019s leaders in milk and cheese production, smaller grass-based outfits struggled to compete with the mega-dairies, often with thousands of cows, that started dotting the state. When Conley moved to Northern California, fluid milk prices were plummeting and small-scale farms in the region were in peril, says <a href=\"http:\/\/www.janetfletcher.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Janet Fletcher<\/a>, writer and publisher of the newsletter <a href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/blog\/planet-cheese\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Planet Cheese<\/a>. \u201cSue Conley saw these dairy farms struggling and wanted to find a way to make them more viable,\u201d Fletcher says.<\/p>\n<p>Some of the first people Conley encountered in Marin were Bill and Ellen Straus, who had been farming in Marshall on the northeast shore of Tomales Bay since the 1940s. Their eldest son, Albert, was transitioning the farm to organic, and Conley helped him find buyers for the farm\u2019s newly certified milk. A few years later, Conley and the Strauses went into business together. In 1996, Peggy Smith joined Conley in Point Reyes to renovate the barn that now houses Cowgirl Creamery, and in 1997 the duo began using <a href=\"http:\/\/strausfamilycreamery.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Straus Family Creamery<\/a> milk to make Mt. Tam, the decadent cheese that put them on the map.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_27081\" style=\"width: 610px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_3.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-27081\" class=\"size-full wp-image-27081\" src=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_3.jpg\" alt=\"Cowgirl Creamery lead cheesemaker Eric Patterson, right, and staff fill cheese forms.\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_3.jpg 600w, https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_3-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-27081\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>Cowgirl Creamery lead cheesemaker Eric Patterson, right, and staff fill cheese forms.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n<h3>Expanding the Herd<\/h3>\n<p>Twenty years later, the creamery keeps growing\u2014and partnering with neighbors to protect and promote local agriculture. In 2007, Smith and Conley met John Taverna, a Petaluma farmer who had recently transformed his Chileno Valley Jersey Dairy to an organic operation. When the recession hit, Taverna couldn\u2019t find customers willing to pay the higher prices for his new products, so a relative called Cowgirl Creamery on his behalf with the hopes that Conley and Smith might purchase the milk. They agreed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSince the milk was 100 percent Jersey and the cows were 100 percent pastured, we decided to use it in our seasonal cheeses to see how the flavors changed over the course of the year,\u201d Conley says.<\/p>\n<p>In spring, the cows eat plenty of fast-growing grass and produce a glut of milk, explains Patterson, the cheesemaker. However, during this rainy season the grass is full of water and less nutrient-dense, resulting in milk that is lighter and more buoyant, with fewer fat particles and other solids.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s the ideal milk for making St Pat (named for St. Patrick\u2019s Day, which falls around the time of year the cheese is released), Patterson says. With less fat to weigh down the milk, it acidifies more easily than the richer summer and winter milks. \u201cThe curds behave well,\u201d says Patterson, meaning that milk proteins come together to make a tight curd that maintains its structure in the vat. When curds are cut, that structure allows the whey to separate cleanly and consistently from the curds. This bodes well for the final moisture level and texture of the cheese, making for a light, fluffy paste.<\/p>\n<p>The milk\u2019s acidity also affects St Pat\u2019s flavor. \u201cIt has a lemony brightness you don\u2019t taste in the fall and winter cheeses,\u201d Patterson says.<\/p>\n<p>Once the curds are formed, brined, and aged for 12 to 14 days, St Pat\u2019s exterior is sprayed with Essensia from California\u2019s <a href=\"http:\/\/www.quadywinery.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Quady Winery<\/a>. The dessert wine, made from muscat grapes, lends a touch of sweetness to the cheese and helps adhere the nettles to the rind. Cheesemakers then apply the leaves directly to the cheese\u2019s surface, wrap it for sale, and send it to a walk-in cooler for another two to four weeks, where it starts developing the nuanced flavors it\u2019s known for, Patterson says. St Pat is a friendly cheese\u2014buttery with vegetal, pleasantly bitter notes from the nettles. It\u2019s also visually striking, with a snow-white bloomy rind peeking through the deep-green leaves wrapped around its exterior.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_27082\" style=\"width: 610px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-27082\" class=\"size-full wp-image-27082\" src=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_1.jpg\" alt=\"The base cheese for St Pat rests on racks.\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_1.jpg 600w, https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/SPR16_centerfold_1-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-27082\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>The base cheese for St Pat rests on racks.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n<p>At <a href=\"http:\/\/www.rainbow.coop\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Rainbow Grocery Cooperative<\/a> in San Francisco, St Pat is the top seller of Cowgirl\u2019s seasonal cheeses, according to buyer Gordon Edgar. \u201cWhen St Pat hits our counter,\u201d he says, \u201cthere\u2019s a seasonal excitement similar to what we get for [Uplands Cheese Co.] <a href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/cheese-library\/Rush-Creek-Reserve\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Rush Creek<\/a>, [Jasper Hill Farm] <a href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/cheese-library\/winnimere\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Winnimere<\/a>, or short-lived seasonal produce like fiddleheads and ramps.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Edgar, who grew up in Marin and has purchased cheese from Smith and Conley since they started making Mt. Tam, remembers the food community\u2019s excitement when Tomales Bay Foods started. \u201cThey ushered in this whole cheese renaissance we\u2019re seeing now,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>Indeed, Cowgirl Creamery\u2019s success\u2014and its loyal partnerships with area farms\u2014has encouraged other farmers to follow suit and for young people to choose farming as an occupation, Conley says. Today, the region is a destination, with the <a href=\"http:\/\/cheesetrail.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Sonoma Marin Cheese Trail<\/a> listing 27 different cheesemakers and creameries.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Cowgirls really helped make a coherent story about Northern California land, agriculture, and dairying traditions,\u201d Edgar adds. Lucky for us, it\u2019s a tale we<br \/>\ncan taste.<\/p>\n<p><small><em>Cowgirl Creamery photography by <a href=\"http:\/\/www.meganclouse.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Megan Clause<\/a> | cheese photography by <a href=\"http:\/\/www.andrewhughpurcell.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Andrew Purcell<\/a><\/em><\/small><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The nettle-wrapped wheel marks spring&#8217;s arrival in Northern California.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":27074,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[26354],"tags":[2756,27535],"coauthors":[718],"class_list":["post-27071","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-st-patricks-day","tag-st-pat"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.4 (Yoast SEO v24.4) - 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