{"id":40582,"date":"2021-10-08T14:03:51","date_gmt":"2021-10-08T18:03:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/?p=40582"},"modified":"2023-02-26T08:59:12","modified_gmt":"2023-02-26T13:59:12","slug":"a-look-behind-the-2021-cheesemonger-invitational","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/a-look-behind-the-2021-cheesemonger-invitational\/","title":{"rendered":"Champions of Cheese at Cheesemonger Invitational NYC 2021\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

A<\/span>fter hearing about the Cheesemonger Invitational<\/a> (CMI) for months, I thought I had an idea of what to expect when I walked into the cavernous Brooklyn Expo on the morning of Friday, October 1, fresh off a flight from Portland, Maine. I\u2019ve participated in dozens of food events, but this day would turn out to be so much more than just an event; it was a celebration\u2014of craft, creativity, skill, and the deep love members of the cheese community have for one another.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDrop your egos at the door,\u201d said CMI organizer and founder Adam Moskowitz to me and the 11 other judges\u2014including several former CMI winners\u2014seated around a long table in a conference room on the Expo\u2019s second floor. \u201cThis isn\u2019t about you; it\u2019s about the mongers.\u201d Our job was less to judge and more to score the 21 participants based on a variety of challenges: a written multiple-choice test; taste and aroma identification; timed cut and wrap; salesmanship; and using an assigned cheese to create a perfect bite, beverage pairing, and slate. \u201cThis is <\/span>hard<\/span><\/i>,\u201d I thought more than once as I watched how focused the mongers were on excelling at each task. Meanwhile, vendors and CMI sponsors (including Rogers Collection, Jasper Hill Farms, Vermont Creamery, and Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin) were setting up tasting samples of cheese, charcuterie, and other products for the open-to-the-public, rollicking party segment of the event.<\/span><\/p>\n

Late in the afternoon, the five finalists were announced: Tommy Amorim of DiBruno\u2019s Bros. in Philadelphia; Emilia D\u2019Albero of The Green Grape in New York City; Kyra James of Own Your Own Funk; Samantha Spontak from Artisan Cheese Co. in Sarasota, Florida; and Reese Wool of Murray\u2019s Cheese in New York City. In front of a live audience (much smaller than usual due to the cancelling of the usually concurrent Fancy Food Show and COVID restrictions\u2014yet still wildly enthusiastic), the finalists answered trivia questions and performed more cut and wrap challenges on stage, while Moskowitz, now attired in his signature Mr. Moo outfit, danced and cheered them on. Finally, just D\u2019Albero and Amorim stood in front of their fellow finalists, and judge Eris Schack, the 2018 CMI NYC winner walked from the side of the stage to hand the trophy to Amorim. \u201cHoly heck I can\u2019t do this job without any one of you,\u201d Amorim said. \u201cIt\u2019s my job to stand vigilant at the counter, and represent these cheesemakers who are all around the room, who stand on their traditions and their vigilance. \u2026 To be in front of all this talent and to be scored as such is so tough. \u2026 But if you guys continue to enjoy cheese I will continue to sell it to you, and to make sure that those farmers have a voice, here in the United States and elsewhere!\u201d His passion echoed through the huge room as his fellow contestants surrounded him in a group hug. Cheese champions, all.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Participants had to identify several aromas as part of the competition. <\/div>\n
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Cheesemonger Samantha Spontak of Artisan Cheese Co. in Sarasota, Florida, paired the Swiss classic, Ch\u00e4llerhocker, with cold iced cider.<\/div>\n
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March\u00e9 cheesemonger Molly Hess’ slate featured T\u00eate de Moine.<\/div>\n

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For his beverage pairing, cheesemonger Reese Wool of Murray’s Cheese in New York City matched Cypress Grove’s Humboldt Fog with a classic Gimlet.<\/div>\n
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Cheesemonger Kyra James of Own Your Own Funk made a statement with her slate. <\/div>\n
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For her slate, cheesemonger Christina Strategos of Nugget Market in Sacramento, California, assembled raclette for two complete with warm, bubbly cheese.<\/div>\n
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Judges Eris Schack, winner of CMI NYC 2018 (left), and Kat Craddock, editorial director at Saveur<\/i>.<\/div>\n
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Judges Perry Soulos, regional director of sales at Euro USA and winner of CMI San Francisco 2014, with Olivia Haver of The Farm at Doe Run. <\/div>\n

\n\"\"<\/a>Deliberating in the judges’ room, from left: Nick Bayne, head cheesemonger of The Fine Cheese Co. in Bath, UK, who won CMI NYC in 2015; Kat Craddock; and cheesemonger Gizella Otterson.<\/div>\n
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\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n
Tallying scores, clockwise from top right: Alex Armstrong, cheese specialist and sensory manager at Jasper Hill Farm; Lilith Spencer, cheesemaker at Jasper Hill Farm and winner of CMI San Francisco 2016; Zoe Brickley, director of communications and e-commerce at Jasper Hill Farm; and Sergio Hernandez, director of culinary and business development at Meez. <\/div>\n
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\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n
Judges Lilith Spencer and Alex Armstrong relax before the finals.<\/div>\n
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Culture<\/i> Editor-in-Chief Susan Sherrill Axelrod (left), and Nick Bayne.<\/div>\n
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 <\/div>\n
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Finalists, from left: Samantha Spontak; Emilia D’Albero of The Green Grape in New York City; Reese Wool; Kyra James; and Tommy Amorim of DiBruno’s Bros. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.<\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n
\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n
Tommy Amorim learns he is the 2021 CMI NYC winner.<\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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