A couple of months ago we started listing some of our favorite ingredients - cheeses, oils, etc. Since we just started the info there is still relatively sparse. I got mail recently Kenn Olson of the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board saying the following:

"I was so disappointed to see that there are NO domestic cheeses on your favorites list. European cheeses are way overrated. In Wisconsin alone, we make almost every variety imaginable. While most cheeses may have been created in Europe, they have been perfected in Wisconsin. Proof is that we won more World Champion Awards in 2004 than any other state or nation. I urge you to go to our web site at foodervice.wisdairy.com and check it out for yourself. I also invite you to next year's Monterey Wine Festival so you can taste some of our champion cheeses first hand. We no longer snub California wines, why do we continue to do so with cheese? "

I sent him the following response:

"You’re right. I just have to spend more time trying various domestic cheeses. Don’t assume it’s some sort of inverted cheese xenophobia. I just haven’t gotten to it yet. I probably need to do the cheese tour of Wisconsin going from dairy to dairy, cheesemaker to cheesemaker, and trying it all. Maybe the festival is the right place to start."

Hmmm... cheese tour of Wisconsin. I could see it. I can eat quite a bit of cheddar. And many other cheeses I'm sure. Belgioso, of Denmark, WI, is producing a domestic Parmesan-ish cheese - American Grana.

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Sorry for the drought in posts the last few days. We're in the middle of a break here at tastingmenu.com. We'll try to post during the break but for a variety of reasons, internet access is spotty at best. But we'll be back on the job in full force on Tuesday, July 27, 2004. In the meantime definitely check out some of our favorite food websites.