Spotlighting Wisconsin cheese

MADISON, Wis. — The “Top Chef” television show has gained popularity in the 20 seasons it has aired and now attracts more than 7 million viewers per episode. The competition-style cooking show is filmed in a new location for each episode. The 21st season, which is airing now, was filmed in Wisconsin, putting Wisconsin cheese in the spotlight of those millions of viewers.

Rachel Kerr is the senior director of experiential and brand marketing at Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin.

“We are obviously trying to promote Wisconsin dairy products and Wisconsin cheese, and getting it in front of that foodie audience is hugely important to us,” Kerr said. “Every time “Top Chef” goes to a new location, they see a significant increase in tourism interest, in people interested in the culinary products of that state. So it does have a huge impact which is incredible.”

Kerr had a close hand in bringing the show to Wisconsin. “Top Chef” sends their scouts to potential locations each year. The Wisconsin Department of Tourism brought Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin along with other agricultural groups, cheese makers and dairy farmers to meet with the show producers. They shared their stories and provided samples of their products to the producers before the producers solidified their decision to film in Wisconsin.

“Cheese and dairy are synonymous with Wisconsin,” Kerr said. “That’s no new news. But they were shocked to meet master cheese makers and understand the kind of innovation that is happening in the state. I think that helped not only show them that Wisconsin is a great culinary destination but kind of helped inspire them to create creative challenges around Wisconsin cheese and Wisconsin dairy.”

During the show, 15 aspiring chefs compete to win the title of “Top Chef America”.  The third episode this season featured a cheese challenge, where contestants were assigned a task to create a dish using Wisconsin cheese within a limited amount of time. Part of the challenge was to cook the dish for 100 people. The cheese makers whose products were featured were able to attend the filming along with a few members of the staff at Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin. 

Some of the cheeses featured in the show included Pleasant Ridge Reserve by Uplands Cheese; Merlot BellaVitano by Pam Hodgson of Sartori; Sancho Cruz, a Mexican-style Manchego by Door Artisan Cheese Company; Widmer Brick by Widmer’s Cheese Cellars; a 15-year aged Cheddar by Hook’s Cheese Company Inc; and Marieke Gouda. Other cheeses featured during the rest of the season include Canela by Roth Cheese; Cheddar curds by Decatur Dairy; Dunbarton Blue Cheese by Roelli Cheese Haus; Glacier Gorgonzola by Carr Valley Cheese; Limburger by Chalet Cheese Coop; Mount Raclette by Alpinage Cheese; Oaxaca by Crave Brothers Farmstead Cheese LLC and Triple Creme Brie by Schroeder Kase.

Andy Hatch of Uplands Cheese said he has already seen an impact of being featured through increased sales.

“Our phone and website started blowing up right away,” Hatch said. “I really appreciated Top Chef’s focus on artisan producers because we are the companies (that are) too small to have our own marketing budget to buy that kind of attention.”

Hatch creates an artisan style cheese with milk from his own small herd of cows. The cheese is only produced during the spring, summer and fall while the cows are on fresh pasture. The cheese is then aged with a natural rind, which requires constant care and attention throughout the 9- 12-month process.

It is difficult to do on a large scale, Hatch said. He said what has been gained in the industry for the sake of efficiency and scale sometimes sacrifices or dilutes character. He said they are trying to make sure their cheese has as much of their farm’s character as possible.

Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin gave Wisconsin cheesemakers the opportunity to submit their product to be featured in the show’s studio kitchen throughout the entire season of filming. Kerr said the top judge, Tom Colicchio, had great reviews.

“Although the cheese episode was certainly the pinnacle moment of the show, I had the chance to talk with Tom, who said they loved having the cheese on set and were always taking samples,” Kerr said. “It was really great to see people of that (prominence) talking about the products from Wisconsin.”

Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin hosted a watch party of the cheese episode at The Sylvee in Madison, where dairy farmers, cheese makers, media and other industry professionals gathered to watch the show and celebrate their featured products. Two contestants of the show were also in attendance — Michelle Wallace, who won the cheese challenge, and Dan Jacobs, who is a Milwaukee native. Pam Hodgson and Sam Crave attended the watch party to represent cheese making and participated in a round table conversation with the contestants.

“This was such a huge moment not just for Wisconsin but for the dairy industry,” Kerr said. “Putting Wisconsin cheese in front of millions of viewers nationwide and having it represented in a way that we always wanted it to be is truly an honor.”