GRANTS PASS, Ore. — Rogue Creamery has been winning awards for years now, but on Friday it made history. At the 2019 World Cheese Awards in Bergamo, Italy, the creamery's Rogue River Blue cheese took home the title of "World Champion Cheese" — the first time that an American cheesemaker has won the title.
Cathy Strange from Whole Foods Market accepted the award on behalf of Rogue Creamery, but not before giving a call to David Gremmels, Rogue Creamery's proverbial "Big Cheese," to share the news.
Strange said that the Rogue River Blue comes from a single herd and is completely organic. The milk is harvested during the Fall Equinox, aged for a year, then gets wrapped in Syrah grape leaves soaked in pear spirits.
Rogue Creamery has claimed awards for the best blue cheese at the World Cheese Awards before, but Friday's win marks a first for the overall World Champion Cheese.
