Best American cheese I have tasted.

[m. ristev]

canal junction charloe is definitely one of the most unique domestic cheeses i have tasted

[dcornutt]

So Brian Hook at Hook's Cheese has "hooked" me up with some great cheddar. Coming soon. Thanks for the heads up guys. Some 15yr. 10yr. A few other things.

[Mike Grammer]

Make another visit up here, Don. I'll take you to St. Lawrence Market and Olympic cheese and you can fetch some 18, 20 or 23 year old

I love almost everything Rogue Creamery makes (other than the Caveman Blue) and am a sucker for Cowgirl Creamery Mt. Tam and Kunik's brie-like cheese--when I can find it!

I'll allow that Jasper Hills Harbison is a fine cheese. I'm also personally quite partial to Cypress Grove's Lambchopper.

Chris, I like buttermilk blue, but use it more in a mashed potatoes recipe--is great for that. But for pure blue, Rogue and Point Reyes are the questworthy cheeses.

There's a place (I think in Quebec) that makes something called Dragon's Breath blue. That's awesome but almost impossible to source.

[Anton D]

So Brian Hook at Hook's Cheese has "hooked" me up with some great cheddar. Coming soon. Thanks for the heads up guys. Some 15yr. 10yr. A few other things.

Yay!

I think you are gonna like it!

[Chris Foley]

My youngest brother's wife makes cheese in Maine: https://lakinsgorgescheese.com/
Her newest cheese, Rockweed, won an award at the Big E this year.

[rfelthoven]

Mount Tam & Red Hawk from Cowgirl Creamery.

THIS. Red Hawk is my favorite cheese.

[Paul Miller]

Just had some Kentucky Tomme from a producer in Indiana. Got it at Whole Foods. Outstanding!

https://www.cheese.com/old-kentucky-tomme/

[Doug Schulman]

There's some kind of magic going on at Jasper Hill. Landaff is probably my favorite cheese from anywhere. Even the Cabot Clothbound Cheddar aged at Jasper Hill is fantastic. Everything I've tried from there is great, but my favorite so far is the Landaff.

I agree that there's no clear "best". There are so many great cheese from this country, even for my very specific tastes (nothing even moderately funky). If I liked all cheese, I imagine the choices would be almost innumerable.

[K_F_o_l_e_y]

I'm partial to anything from Jasper Hill.

They used to have a stand at Boston Public Market that sold raclette and grilled cheese sandwiches made with a combination of Landaff and Alpha Tomen.

Yes, I'm still crying that it closed.

[patrick c albright]

Two Rock Valley.
An incredible goat cheese from a farm a few miles west of Petaluma.

[Joe D]

And +1 for Cowgirl, Rogue, and Vermont Creamery being in the top rank.

Another great NW producer without much buzz yet is Cascade Creamery in Trout Lake WA. Beautiful country up there, near my spots for finding chanterelles and porcini.

Yes! We’ve been consuming a lot of their Sleeping Beauty lately.

[Tom G l a s g o w]

Whole Foods has the Rush Creek Reserve, yet the cheese makers website lists 11/11 as the release date. Nonetheless, we enjoyed the RCR and a bit of Landaff.

[Kenny H]

Yes, I picked up RCR, along with the Rogue Blue, on Friday 11/1.

[Jay Miller]

very cool. had not heard of this place. good story https://www.arethusafarm.com/

will get some today.

I was passing through Grand Central yesterday so I stopped by Murrays and picked up some Arethusa Blue (the only one they had available) to try. I'll report back.

[Jim Stewart]

Cheese hunting was pretty good at my local Whole Foods recently. I came back with a quintet of never-tasted and thread-recommended American cheeses, including the newly crowned world champion Rogue River Blue. Although three of the cheeses were not quite “a point” – the Harbison, Red Hawk and Mt Tam – all were quality and delicious cheeses that even a French cheese-o-phile would give a favorable nod to. The Rogue River Blue was especially fine. Good stuff all around!

[Mike Evans]

I tried the Rogue River Blue next to their normal Oregon Blue last night and preferred the normal, which will be good for my wallet since it is $15 less per pound. The River was fine, but had a little sweetness and a gamy edge that I don’t prefer.

[Nathan V.]

We really love our local. IMO, the first NC cheese that was truly world-class. They've been making a splash for the last few years at all the cheese fairs. We keep a Rocket's Robiola in our cheese "cellar" at all times.

This list is a bit out of date but gives a general overview.

https://boxcarrhandmadecheese.com/our-cheeses/

Looks like they're getting more widely distributed too:

https://boxcarrhandmadecheese.com/where-to-buy/

The only downside thus far to the increased production has been that it's harder to find the cheeses perfectly ripe. Hence, we like to have them for a week or two prior to cutting into them.

Red wine is generally terrible with cheese except for things like cheddar, Reggiano, Gouda or similar.

[Lee Short]

Another fine producer is Shepherd's Way from Minnesota. It's been a while since I've had any, but I have no reason to believe they aren't as good as ever.

[Nathan V.]

Picked up Harbison, Rush Reserve and Boxcar Rocket's yesterday so I'll settle this question once and for all when they reach ripeness.

[Jay Miller]

very cool. had not heard of this place. good story https://www.arethusafarm.com/

will get some today.

I was passing through Grand Central yesterday so I stopped by Murrays and picked up some Arethusa Blue (the only one they had available) to try. I'll report back.

It was very good but was served next to the Rogue River Blue which outclassed it.

[Lee Short]

I wanted a low-effort dinner, so this thread inspired me. Tonight's dinner is cucumber salad, local Spitzenberg apples, the walnut loaf from Ken's Artisan Bakery, and a cheese plate of: Rush Creek Reserve, Harbison, Rogue River Blue, Red Hawk, Cascadia Creamery Sawtooth, and Novak 7-year Wisconsin cheddar, all grabbed at Cheese Bar on Belmont. They told me they often have some cheddar from Hook's, but not right now -- so I went for the Novak as a backup.

Lots of fantastic cheeses here. Really couldn't pick a favorite if I had to -- they are all great at what they are. Probably the blue is really the highest quality of them, but it's also not my favorite style. The plate is a bit heavy on soft cheeses, but the blue and the cheddar are both good changes of pace.

[Michae1 P0wers]

Sounds excellent Lee.

Local Trader Joe's carries Harbison around the holidays. Picked up two at $13 each which seems like a steal, though I can't remember what I've recently paid elsewhere. Also have Langres for $7. Fridge is fairly packed with good cheese right now but will be hosting a Christmas party for 30+ people next week so I imagine it will all go quickly.