AMATEUR CHEESEMAKERS HAVE A CHANCE FOR GLORY AT THE NZ CHAMPIONS OF CHEESE AWARDS
Anna Rolfe of Curds & Whey presents Dr Andrew Rodgers from St Peter’s College in Auckland with the hobbyist cheesemaking award in 2021. The Award was for SPC Blue, made by St Peters College year 12 students
Monday 8 August 2022. Students and hobby cheesemakers are invited to enter their cheese in the revamped Curds & Whey Amateur Cheesemaker Award which is part of the NZ Champions of Cheese Awards.
Traditionally this Award has been judged with all the other NZ Champions of Cheese Awards entries in February. However, from this year judging has moved to October to align more easily with the education year – as well as with NZ Cheese Month. Additionally the Award has a new name - Amateur Cheesemaker Award.
For the past two years the trophy has been awarded to students from St Peters College, Auckland for their Blue Cheese. Winners from previous years have gone onto careers in the dairy industry; such as Homecrafted Cheesemaker and Cheese Champion 2019; Jennifer Rodrigue. After her win Jennifer obtained MPI registration and began trading commercially as Belle Chèvre Creamery. In 2012 Curds & Whey Champion Home Crafted Cheese Award went to Adrian Walcroft for his Mozzarella. Adrian and his partner Jill established Cartwheel Creamery and have since won commercial awards.
Owned and organised by the New Zealand Specialist Cheesemakers Association (NZSCA). The NZ Champions of Cheese Awards celebrate the best NZ cheese as well as helping to improve cheese quality by providing benchmarking and feedback to cheesemakers.
Announcing the Amateur Cheesemaker Award NZSCA Chair Catherine McNamara said she hoped the changes would make it easier for school and hospitality students to make cheese with the support of teachers and lecturers. “As a dairying nation we want to do everything we can to encourage the new generation of cheesemakers into the industry and there is nothing like getting their hands into a vat of curds and whey to trigger a lifelong love of making cheese!”
“Additionally it means those who make fresh cheese will be able to make it with the finest quality milk of the year. As grass growth returns in the spring; goats, sheep, buffalo, and cows return to milking providing lush, creamy milk – the ideal starting ingredient for a great cheese.”
Entry is $40 per cheese and entries must be completed by Friday 30 September. Entry samples need to be delivered to Auckland for judging on Tuesday 18 October and Wednesday 19 October. NZ Champions of Cheese Awards Master Judge Jason Tarrant will judge amateur entries and the winner will be announced on Tuesday 25 October, during NZ Cheese Month. The winner will be invited to attend the NZ Champions of Cheese Gala Dinner in Hamilton in early 2023 to collect the Curds & Whey Amateur Cheesemaker Award trophy.
For more details visit www.nzsca.org.nz