Via Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship
SHELBURNE – Inside the historic breeding barn at Shelburne Farms, the bustle of the 13th-annual Vermont Cheesemakers Festival filled the space with an aroma of cheese, jams and cocktails.
For local producers, the festival was a chance to connect with each other while sharing their products and stories.
Among them was Hannah Sessions, a dairy farmer from Blue Ledge Farm in Leicester.
Sessions co-owns the farm with her husband, Greg. They’ve been participating in the festival since its inception.
“Farming and cheesemaking can be a little bit isolating at times, and so it’s nice to be able to connect with folks and celebrate a little,” said Hannah.
Blue Ledge just celebrated its 25th year in business. Fresh out of college, Hannah and Greg decided to try their hands at dairy farming with their modest herd of 35 dairy goats. Since then, they have grown to a goat herd of 175, selling their craft cheeses as festival mainstays.
“Now, we also make a full line of cow’s milk cheeses,” Hannah said. “The first year we made cheese, we made 8,000 pounds. And now, we’re up to just over 60,000 pounds a year, all handmade cheeses.”
But cheese isn’t the only thing festival attendees noshed on. For Kent Naylor, owner of Sidehill Farm in Brattleboro, the festival was a chance to share his farm’s locally-made jams with the public, offering samples as pairings to the fromages.
Naylor said traditional jams, like fig, are his favorite to pair with local cheeses.
“We also make quince paste or a membrillo,” he said. “It’s made with local quince. The traditional pairing is with Manchego cheese. We’re serving that today with some Vermont cheddar.”
Sidehill’s jam-making began 40 years ago in Calais, before Kent and his wife purchased the farm from his parents in 2000. Sidehill Farm distributes over 40 products, mostly jams, statewide.
“Our claim to fame is that we don’t use any pectin or thickeners in any of our jams. They’re made the old-fashioned way. There aren’t too many companies that I even know about that do that anymore,” said Naylor.
By mid-afternoon, the festival was filled to the brim with cheese lovers lining up for sharp cheddars, soft bries and everything in between.
For Amy Titus and Nathan Livelsberger, getting to the festival required them to get crafty. Travelling from Pennsylvania, the pair was hoping to attend the festival while on summer vacation in Vermont. After learning that tickets were already sold out, they offered to volunteer.
“We actually both work for our local grocery stores, and we thought it would be interesting to come and volunteer at the festival,” said Titus.
After helping with different jobs, like setting up vendor tables and taking out the trash, volunteers were free to roam the festival and get in on the action.
“We’ve met a lot of people in the industry earlier today — definitely got to talk to a lot of people and find out about some local hot spots and local food,” said Livelsberger.
Not every table at the festival was there to promote products. Agela Abdullah is the President of the Cheese Culture Coalition, a non-profit focused on inclusion and equity in the cheese industry. The org supports BIPOC cheesemakers across the country through education and a grant program.
“We have a microgrant program, which is up to $500. Let’s say you wanted to come to the Vermont Cheese Makers Festival and you don’t have any PTO. Instead of losing a day, you would have that covered by one of our grants,” Abdullah said from behind her table.
For dairy farmers, brewers, cheesemakers, advocates and enjoyers alike, the festival was a chance to revel in a shared love for one of the state’s most famous exports.
“People are very excited about Vermont cheese. We’re here to promote Vermont cheese and promote the local economy and all of our hard work,” said Hannah.