by Zoe Brickley

Ok, so everyone got a golden medallion for participating – but we did finish in the top third – 4^th place ain’t bad. 

We feel especially good about our performance because we climbed 8 places from the last competition.  As impressive as that sounds, it isn’t that Murray’s got four times better at merchandising, salesmanship and cheese handling; instead we just got better at playing the cheese game as the away team. 

Our mistake last time was that we tried to beat the Europeans at their own game.  We attempted to tone down our sales style, under-fill our case, and present a classic French cheese to a panel of French judges. 

Here’s how we redeemed ourselves: 

Setting the Case:  Frankie and I had an hour and a half to cut 30 cheeses down into retail sized pieces, and arrange them into a small (much smaller than we remembered) case.  We were judged on our selection and presentation.  This year we went with our signature robust display of a solid wall of cheese.  Little brown craft paper signs with cheeky descriptions made each mysterious wedge more approachable.  We topped it all off with farmstead honeys, jams, crackers, a fat wedge of Parm and some foodie mags.  In my opinion, compared with all the tight-laced and sterile cases – ours looked like it would be the most fun to hang out around. 

Sales: We proved our playful aesthetic in the next round with the sales test.  A trio of judges successively visited each case and asked the same questions – typical cheesemonger FAQs:  ‘We’re having a party for twenty and we need 6 cheeses… how do you serve that sort of thing… any suggestions for pairings or accoutrements…’  This was my event and I played up our approachability factor.  ‘Hey guys – welcome to the US – whatcanIdoforya?’   

Even though I thought I had a couple mis-steps (the only red wine I could think of to pair on the fly was Pinot Noir – so lame!) I think we scored at the top for the event because I was able to cut and wrap while talking about what the next choice might be. Also – as the catch, a third judge came running up pretending to be double parked and impatient. I successfully and politely kept her at bay while finishing up with my primary customers – bonus points. I ended up finishing a minute early, while others struggled to get all the cheeses wrapped and the customers out the 'door' within the ten minute limit. Perhaps their cute little Euro shops have never seen relentless village tourist traffic like we entertain here on a regular basis. 

Next, Frankie and I had individual events. He tackled a multiple choice quiz (with insane questions like 'how many gallons of milk went into the production of Ossau Iraty last year?'), while I blind tasted a sampler of cheeses and attempted to name their regions, milk type, and age in number of days. I was not expecting that last part, which was a new twist this year. I was confident about 5 out of 6 – but we never found out the right answers. Frankie rocked the exam and scored at the top. 

Now that our style, brains, charm and palates were evaluated, it was time for the physical challenges. 

Cutting: Frankie was charged with tackling the giant British cheddar. A 50lb clothbound wheel needed to be accurately halved using only a double handled wire – one half into quarters, with one cut in thirds and the other into twenty 250g pieces. Frankie had the most beautiful and saleable wedges by far – but there was a trick; in order for the quarter to be cut into 20 equal sized pieces that all fell within the accepted weight range, either a two pound chunk needed to be removed from the quarter first, or the nose needed to be lopped off of each wedge, rendering them ugly and wasteful. Frank is genetically programmed not to waste cheese, so his cuts were on the heavy side, but even with this snafu, we still did pretty well.  

Wrapping: During the cutting frenzy, I stepped up to the plate and deftly wrapped 20 odd shaped pieces and bagged them in order of softness within ten minutes – with three minutes to spare! My holiday gift production marathon really paid off there. The only head scratcher was a leaky, perforated cup of fresh cheese.  I ended up neatly gathering the paper over the top and giving it a decorative twist. I thought it was a pretty slick move… 

Presentation: And finally… drumroll as I swallow my heart… the presentation of a cheese for the judges to taste. This is the reason I did not sleep the night before. (while cheddar nerves kept Frankie up) I paced my hotel room trying to keep my schpiel within ten minutes, and as my mother suggested, worked on my enunciation and audience eye contact. I was so nervous, A.) because 20 of the most accomplished cheese dorks in the universe would be hanging on my every word, and B.) I chose to bring an American cheese, based on a French recipe, and I really wanted the judges to like it and for the cheesemaker, a great friend of ours, to be represented in the best possible light. I was even more nervous after I saw the elaborate gastronomic creations other countries had assembled. (Did I miss a memo here, or were we just supposed to present a cheese?) Whatever.    

We were rewarded in the end for sticking to our principles of simplicity, clarity, and farmstead value. The cheese, Upland's Pleasant Ridge Reserve (which we smuggled in several suitcases, just in case) was met with rave reviews by many of the judges, and by the public who got to taste a wheel after the show. Our pairing with Ommegang's Rare Vos Ale from upstate NY was said by one judge to be a panel favorite. By skipping the antics we were able to really elaborate on how carefully the cheese was made and how it fit into the greater framework of the American Farmstead Movement. I think we changed some minds about where, as a whole, our American cheese scene is. 

In the end, the score spread from first place to fourth was within 10 points, and many judges later told us they had hoped to see us on the podium, so that’s pretty cool.  We were just nosed out by the French (home team advantage?), Japanese, and British in that order.  All of whom were cool cats and kindred spirits that we were glad to see recognized. 

Besides, it’s nice for them to have one last whiff of glory before we knock it out of the park in 2011, right? 

More CASEUS Coverage:
American Cheesemongers: the New Curds on the Block

Blog from the Front Lines: Murray's VP Liz Thorpe Featured on The Feedbag

Watch Footage of the Events on Sirha