Cheese makers, judges and dairy enthusiasts from around the globe gathered at the Monona Terrace for the 27th Biennial World Championship Cheese Contest in Madison from March 11 to 13.
Hosted by the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association, the event is the largest international cheese contest in the world. From string cheese to sweetened dessert cheese, there are 77 different categories of cheese dairy producers can enter. The competition also features two categories for butter producers.
A panel of 22 international judges from countries including France, Japan and South Africa inspects and tastes each product and critiques its flavor, texture, color, appearance and packaging. Charles Lindberg, a judge from Belfast, N.Y., said evaluators are looking for specific trait.
“We’re checking the body and texture of the cheese to make sure it’s as close to a perfect gouda as it can be,” Lindberg said.
Lindberg said each product begins with a score of 100 and points are deducted for negative characteristics. For Eric Liebetrau, president of Fond du Lac-based Park Cheese Company, Inc., and a volunteer at the contest, taste is the one of the most crucial elements in the judging process.
“[The judges] have an idea in their mind what the product should taste like and any deviations from that they categorize and they can take up to 35 points off,” Liebetrau said.
After judges score the products, entries earning the highest average score are awarded gold, silver or bronze medals. Products receiving gold medals are then judged a second time and entries with the highest average score in each category are recognized as the world champion.
The judging period ends Thursday and an awards banquet is scheduled for April.
According to Mike Ely, a Madison native volunteering at the contest, some of the leftover cheese from the competition is sold to local food companies such as Brennan’s Market for retail sale.
Additionally, the top cheeses in each category are auctioned off for scholarship funds. Ely said championship cheeses can sell for $100 to $300.
