Cutting the Curd

The Summer Fancy Food Show is happening this week in New York City and that means cheesemakers and specialty food producers are in town in a big way. Our guests today are in town from Italy: Bruno Gritti of Quattro Portoni and Paola Calciolari of Le Tamerici chat with Elena about their products and what's ahead for them during their trip to the states. It's HRN's annual summer fund drive, this is...

In our third Cheesemaking Elements episode of the year, Elena visits Crown Finish Caves, Brooklyn-based Affineur, to focus on the final steps in the cheesemaking process: maturing, packaging and distributing the cheese. Elena chats with Crown Finish Cave Manager Ethan Partyka and Sales Director Caroline Hesse. It's HRN's annual summer fund drive, this is when we turn to our listeners and ask that...

On today's show Diane interviews writer Natalie Danford . Natalie was the translator for Slow Food 's Osteria: 1,000 Generous and Simple Recipes from Italy's Best Local Restaurants. It's HRN's annual summer fund drive, this is when we turn to our listeners and ask that you make a donation to help ensure a bright future for food radio. Help us keep broadcasting the most thought provoking, entertain...

Our guest today is Amy Thompson , owner and operator of Full Shelf Foods . Amy's path to business ownership was mostly rooted in retail work. We'll hear about how she's bringing a cheesemonger's perspective to brokerage space. Also, what exactly is a brokerage-type business? Cutting The Curd is powered by Simplecast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at h...

Jessica Kesselman joins Elena in studio to discuss working in cheese alongside her journey as a parent. How well does the cheese industry support parents, and what are the challenges specific to parents that come up when working in cheese? Elena and Jessica explore the answers to these questions and more on today's episode! Cutting the Curd is powered by Simplecast . See Privacy Policy at https://...

Will Studd is perhaps best known for his cheese-focused television show, Cheese Slices . Now in its eighth season and with sixty-four episodes under his belt, Will Joins Elena on air to talk about all that goes into the show. We'll also hear about his newest adventure, Will Studd's Cheese Range, a curated selection of cheeses offered to the US and Australian markets. Cutting the Curd is powered by...

This month Diane interviews freelance writer and former New Yorker editor Emily Rees Nunn about her food-focused memoir, Comfort Food Diaries. Cutting the Curd is powered by Simplecast. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Elena, Diane and Aaron are at it again with our second end-of-season host show. Following the runaway 'morning talk show' style success of last season's host show, Elena has some thought-provoking cheese-related prompts for the group, Diane tries to thwart her efforts and Aaron tries his best to answer while aghast at what's happening in the studio. Cutting the Curd is powered by Simplecast. See P...

Cara Warren has worked in cheese since 2005 and is currently the East Coast Sales Manager for Isigny Sainte Mere . Cara's pairings wow'ed the room at The Cheeses of Europe Interactive Beer & Fromage Event last week, and on the same day Vice Munchies featured her along with a small group of lesbian and non-binary cheese professionals . Elena chats with Cara in studio on the heels of both! Cutti...

Janet Fletcher chats with Diane about her latest book, Wine Country Table. A Napa Valley resident and long-time food writer, Janet's Planet Cheese is an industry favorite newsletter. Cutting The Curd is powered by Simplecast. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

We caught up with Rachel Smith, General Manager at Goed Zuur, in the midst of a cheese-inspired road trip. Two years after opening Denver's first sour beer tap room, Goed Zuur is en route to pick up their first cheesemaker collaboration: Acid Wash, made by Parish Hill (washed with––you guessed it: sour beer!). Elena and Rachel chat about this first cheese collaboration project, the joys of growing...

Ivy Ronquillo is about to join the frazzled ranks of cheese shop owners with her new emporium Second Mouse Cheese in Pleasantville, NY. While Ivy has extensive experience in the advertising industry, as well as a culinary degree from FCI and years working in specialty food for the likes of Murray's and Artisanal, opening a shop presents an entirely new set of challenges. We join Ivy on the precipi...

What do you do when your plans turn to ash––literally?! Inga Witscher, host of PBS's Around the Farm Table , chats with Elena about the unique moment she and her husband find themselves in. Just as they were on the cusp of building out a brand new cheesemaking room, their barn and facilities burned down last fall. Now, rebuilding is the new plan. Cutting the Curd is powered by Simplecast. See Priv...

In our second episode of the 2019 Cheesemaking Elements series Elena dives deep into the world of cheese cultures. Culture expert Robert Aguilera explains how culture houses work and why we're starting to see monoculture creep when it comes to starters and adjunct cultures used in cheesemaking. Plus, how the culture supply chain business is changing within the growing cheese industry. Check out th...

Diane welcomes Steve Jones of Portland's Cheese Bar and writer Adam Lindsley––co-authors of Cheese Beer Wine Cider: A Field Guide to 75 Perfect Pairings ––to the show this week. Listen as Diane gets to geek out on two of her favorite things: cheese and beer! Cutting the Curd is powered by Simplecast. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com...

This will be seven years since the DZTA was founded in 2012. The organization has grown its squad of cheese teachers, just released a newly defined vision for the organization and has a revamped membership on their Board of Directors. Rachel Juhl, Chief Administrator of the Endowment, chats with Elena about how the organization has grown and what's in store for Award winners of the future. Cutting...

Founded in 1940, Murray's Cheese remains a New York City institution. Over the past ten years they've taken their cheese show on the road, and 430 stores later they have made their mark within their Kroger 'Cheese Shops' all around the country. Elena talks with Lauren Toth, Project Manager, Training & Curriculum at Murray’s Cheese about how the Kroger program became such a huge endeavor, and h...

Our 2019 Cheesemaking Elements series kicks off with...milk! Sheep’s milk, at that, in all its luscious glory. Elena interviews Mariana Marques de Almeida, sheep and goat specialist on everything from milk production to cheesemaking . Check out the Dairy Sheep Association for more resources! Cutting the Curd is powered by Simplecast. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California P...

On this month's book review Diane Stemple interviews Mike Edison , fellow Heritage Radio Network host (Arts & Seizures) about his latest memoir, You Are a Complete Disappointment, A Triumphant Memoir of Failed Expectations. With the title pulled from real life––it was one of the last things the author’s father said to him before dying––there's a lot to get into here! Cutting the Curd is powere...

Cheese-focused culinary specialist, Rachel Freier, joins Elena in studio. Rachel’s experience working with chefs and culinary students reveals that, unlike truffles or prime cuts of meat, specialty cheese is woefully misunderstood by back-of-house staff. Undaunted by the learning curve, Rachel is committed to changing how cheese is thought of—and handled—in the restaurant kitchen. Cutting the Curd...

On today's show Elena looks at a facet of the cheese business that's tangential to the supply chain: cheese tourism. Anna Juhl, Founder and CEO of Cheese Journeys and Sylvain Jamois, Private Chef and Cooking Instructor, join Elena in studio to chat about their growing cheese-focused travel business, Cheese Journeys . Cutting The Curd is powered by Simplecast. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.co...

Elena, Diane and Aaron all gather in-studio as an end-cap to our fall season and 2018! This episode features reflections on the cheese industry this year, host-picks for 2018 Cutting the Curd season highlights, lowbrow confessions and a spirited debate on what cheeses should be represented if Mt. Rushmore featured cheese instead of American Presidents. Cutting the Curd is powered by Simplecast . S...

Marieke Penterman is no newcomer to the American artisanal cheesemaking scene––or to this podcast! On today's show Elena and Marieke chat about the joys of a well-aged business and how Marieke got to where she is today. As mentioned in the episode, here's a link to the new Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin commercial featuring Marieke and her cheesemaking neighbors. Cutting the Curd is powered by Simplec...

Following up on our Supply Chain 101 show with Aaron and Glenn, on the first half of this week’s show Elena goes in-depth with Brie Hurd of The Cheese Shop of Salem on her simple [and brilliant] approach to placing pre-orders as a retail buyer. In the second half of the show Brie pulls back the curtain on some of the systems and philosophies behind her highly functioning retail operations. Can a c...

"The King of Cheese" or as Elena puts it, "The Queen of Umami" – today's show is all about the wonders of Parmigiano Reggiano. Grace Singleton of Zingerman's Deli sheds light on the Consorzio del Formaggio Parmigiano-Reggiano and Elena tastes three different parms live, in studio! Cutting the Curd is powered by Simplecast. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Noti...