I came across this thread on eGullet the other day: Alice Water’s takes on Artisan Cheese. (And, in case you were wondering, I spend way too much time on eGullet.)

While the entire post (and the linked article with Ms Water’s comments) is quite interesting, the part of the discussion I’m drawn to is, for my purposes, curdnerd’s (aka Jonathan White of Bobolink Dairy) post about the relative harsh realities of being an artisan cheesemaker. He does a good job explaining some of the basics of the business side of cheesemaking. For example:

From an engineering point of view, a cheesemaker converts milk->cheese->cash, with the two arrows representing “transfer functions”.

The first arrow means buying and transporting milk, adding labor, energy, capital equipment amortization, incidental ingredients, and packaging, and turning out a product. If it is an aged cheese, then there is a second phase to this function, namely the ripening room, which is essentially another capital cost, energy cost, plus a 2-18 month time lag.

The second function is the marketing of the cheese, which can be as simple as a cigar box and cooler out by the farm gate, or as complex as warehouses, distributors, salespeople, bill collectors, etc.

He goes on to explain some of the high costs of doing business and hurdles that are unique to the cheese biz, and some of the typical hardships any entrepreneur will face. While none of it seems insurmountable, it does go to show that quite a bit of planning and business savvy is required to make a successful go of it. There was one line, though, that nicely (if you can call it that sums up one of the biggest fears I have regarding the cheese dream:

A well-known cheesemaker of means likes to quip “if you want to make a small fortune in cheese, start with a large one”.

In my first post I mentioned that the cheese dream has often felt like a pipe dream. Part of the reason for that is that I tend to talk rather than act about a lot of different things. The main reason, though, is that it seems like there are lot of “second career” types who, after making their bucks, turn to a back-to-the-land “artisan” lifestyle. Look at Coach Farm (of the Coach leather fortune) and Maytag Blue (of the Maytag appliance fortune) for two (admittedly extreme) examples. I can’t help but think there are plenty of retired stockbrokers, lawyers, and CEOs out there making cheese.

That said, I do believe it’s entirely possible to overcome the fact that I don’t have a large fortune at hand to help make this thing a reality. I do, obviously, need to find out what sort of capital is required to start such a business. Then I’ll need a plan to acquire that capital.

I guess I have my work cut out for me.

I just got word that the NYS Cheese Guild marketing job is most likely still open, but the woman who was hiring the position has left the RFFP. I’m still waiting to hear back from them, but I’m not holding my breath.

Yesterday I sent an e-mail to Jonathan White at Bobolink Dairy inquiring about the possibility of doing an internship or apprenticeship at his farm.

My e-mail—which I’ve decided not to reprint, believing that private correspondence should remain just that—explained that I was very interested in such an opportunity, but I wasn’t sure I could afford to do a full-time apprenticeship. I suggested that perhaps an internship of a few days a week would be better. I also tried to convey that I’m serious about this; I’m not just burned out on this whole new-media thing.

Within half an hour, Jonathan had written back, inviting me to come and make cheese with him one weekend soon, so we could meet each other and I could see what Bobolink is all about. This is exactly the kind of response I was hoping for!

A few e-mails and phone calls later, and we’d set the date for Saturday, November 1st. He’d suggested I come on a Saturday or Sunday within the next few weeks as he’ll soon be “drying the herd off for winter.” I’m not sure what that means, but I guess I’ll find out soon enough. Kari thinks it means that the cows will get to return to “normal” cow life, rather than a constant state of lactation, which sounds good enough to me. If anyone knows for sure, please leave a note in the comments.

Anyway, on November 1st, I’m going to get to Bobolink at 7:30AM (!) so I can observe/help with the milking. From there, we’ll make cheese (probably around 9 or so) and then bake bread. (Apparently, bread is becoming a large part of their operation. I’m looking forward to this part too, actually, because I’ve been fooling around with baking myself lately. Baking bread myself, that is.) The day should be over around 2 or so, but I’ll probably stick around afterward for some bread and cheese. Apprenticeship or no, this sounds like it’ll be a good time.

I’m not sure, of course, where this will all take me. I’m hoping for an educational experience—an in-depth look into the life I think I want to lead. If nothing else, I’ll get to eat some good cheese and hang out with some cows.

I first learned about Bobolink Dairy on this thread on eGullet, where Jonathan posts as “curdnerd”. Anyone who’s read this far should really read through this thread to see what’s going on at Bobolink. The pictures are great, as is the discussion itself.