{"id":36831,"date":"2019-06-20T07:45:47","date_gmt":"2019-06-20T11:45:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/?p=36831"},"modified":"2021-08-24T14:54:39","modified_gmt":"2021-08-24T18:54:39","slug":"a-visit-to-gothberg-farms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/a-visit-to-gothberg-farms\/","title":{"rendered":"A Visit to Gothberg Farms"},"content":{"rendered":"

T<\/span>hree miles inland from Samish Bay in northern Skagit Valley, Gothberg Farms<\/a> sits down a quiet road surrounded by expansive fields. Don\u2019t bother relying on GPS to get there, however. It rarely works out. \u201cGoogle maps always takes people to my neighbor\u2019s house,\u201d owner Rhonda Gothberg tells me on the call I made for exactly that reason. \u201cLook for the tan and white buildings further down. That\u2019s us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gothberg is a tall and friendly Texan, with a firm handshake and a sharp intellect. She and her husband, Roy, purchased the 40 acres of land in 2001 when it was a cow dairy. Coming from a three-decade career in nursing and a stint as a realtor, the change in lifestyle and pace was welcome. \u201cI could have been the head of a healthcare company,\u201d she asserts, \u201cbut enough was enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gothberg\u2019s dairy adventure began shortly after completely renovating their home, when she purchased her first animal. Then…more. \u201cI was hooked,\u201d she laughs. \u201cI bought another, then another.\u201d Today, Gothberg cares for a herd of 40 Lamancha goats<\/a>, with half being used for milking each day. She prefers the breed for their personality and high milk production. \u201cI just love them,\u201d she says. One of the oldest, named Ditto, is nearly 14 years old and still milking. Gently scratching her on the head, Gothberg smiles. \u201cShe\u2019s still going strong.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Gothberg\u2019s affinity for her animals goes beyond mere fondness. She feels a responsibility to care for her animals in the best way possible. From specially designing the barn in which they live to the custom feed she developed to nourish them (called, of course, \u201cGothberg goat\u201d), these goats are central to her love of what she does. As she says, \u201cThese goats aren\u2019t merely animals for milk. They\u2019re part of us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since achieving their Grade-A goat dairy license from the Washington State Department of Agriculture in 2004, Gothberg and her team have been making, aging, and packaging cheese in their on-site dairy. The staff hovers around seven or eight employees, depending on the season.<\/p>\n

Gothberg recently made the decision to milk the animals year-round, allowing her to keep her employees on the payroll, rather than losing them to temporary work in the off-season. \u201cI\u2019m happy to be able to provide a paycheck to everyone,\u201d she says. \u201cPlus, I have great people working with me. I\u2019d hate to lose them to a part-time job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Head cheesemaker Lindsey Gerth makes around 175 pounds of cheese a week using the dairy\u2019s small 52-gallon vat, a quantity Gothberg is content with. \u201cWe\u2019re as big as we care to be,\u201d she says. \u201cWe can maintain the quality of our cheeses this way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their first offerings were fresh ch\u00e8vre and gouda. Now the farm offers nearly 32 styles including fresh goat milk ricotta<\/a>, a delicious version of Caerphilly<\/a>, raw-milk cheddar, and others. A consistent favorite is the intensely sharp Woman of La Mancha, their take on Manchego<\/a>. Cured with olive oil and Spanish paprika, the wheels are aged for over a year to give the cheese the sharp, intense personality people love, including Gothberg herself. \u201cI make cheeses I like to eat,\u201d she confidently asserts. \u201cI don\u2019t make them to satisfy any market.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their customers include local chef accounts and farmers markets. They also offer customers on-site purchasing. Under the awning, a weathered armoire serves as a self-serve station called the \u201chonor box.\u201d Inside, a small refrigerator stocked with pre-wrapped cheeses accompanies a mason jar with a handwritten \u201cmoney jar\u201d label. Visitors use the pricing sheet and make payments as needed.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Maintaining the farm and facilities in addition to the animals is quite the workload, especially as Gothberg ages. \u201cIt\u2019s getting harder and harder,\u201d Gothberg says, sighing. \u201cI don\u2019t have a department for this or that. It\u2019s just me.\u201d Even with her husband handling all the support tasks, it\u2019s a herculean effort.<\/p>\n

Talking about the future is difficult for Gothberg. A part of her knows there will come a time to hang up the cheesemaking apron. \u201cEverything has a last day somewhere,\u201d she says, reflecting on the truth in her statement. She\u2019s not completely sold on the idea, though. After a quiet moment, she smiles and looks around.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t imagine not doing this.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When owner Rhonda Gothberg decided to buy a goat, she had no idea she’d one day be running a thriving dairy farm that makes 32 cheeses.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":99,"featured_media":36832,"comment_status":"open","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":[14151,14156,14154,14155,14153,14152,14157],"coauthors":[1538],"class_list":["post-36831","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-gothberg-farms","tag-lindsey-gerth","tag-rhonda-gothberg","tag-roy-gothberg","tag-samish-bay","tag-skagit-valley","tag-woman-of-la-mancha"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nCome Along on a Visit to Gothberg Farms<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When owner Rhonda Gothberg decided to buy a goat, 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