Out and About: Leelanau Cheese

As I sit here eating locally made, award winning Leelanau Cheese Raclette, I ponder what to write about.  The answer was right in front of my face!  Raclette is traditionally a cheese from the Swiss Alps and a key ingredient in Swiss fondue.
Last winter I visited John and Anne Hoyt, Proprietors/Cheesemakers at Leelanau Cheese, located at Black Star Farm in Suttons Bay, MI. They were kind enough to walk me through the process of making Raclette and explain what was happening at every stage.

Here are some photos from the day:

Cutting the curd with a nifty tool from Switzerland. Cheesemaker John Hoyt designed this kettle himself. Prior to this step, the milk has been pasteurized and cooled, then cultures, rennet and a small amount of salt are added.

John pulls the curds from the whey.

The curds are poured into molds.

Cheesemaker Anne Hoyt uses weights to press they whey from the curd. The molds have microperforations to let the whey out.

Each mold yields 2 wheels of cheese, and cutting has to be precise so the wheels are shaped consistently.

After the cheeses are pressed in the molds for 24 hours, they come into this brine bath. This is where their life in the cellar begins. After the cheese is brined for 24 hours, it is moved to wooden shelves where it ages for 3 months to 2 years.

Each wheel is turned, washed, and brushed with salt water by hand- every day.

The cellars at Leelanau Cheese. Capacity is about 2,000 wheels.

Finished product, for sale at the tasting room at Black Star Farm and all over Northern Michigan.