Four: Cutting The Cheese
While rennet gets the process of separating curds and whey started, a little mechanical action helps the process along. The curd needs to be cut to release the whey trapped inside. Cheesemakers drag two wire screens through the long vat one screen has vertical wires drawn across it, the other horizontal ones. Together the screens cut the curd into small cubes, which almost immediately leak out the yellow whey.
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Retail Sales And Cheese Shop
Beecher’s features a gourmet cheese shop and café in both their Pike Place Market and Flatiron facility. It is considered an anchor of the Pike Place Market, and has become a tourist attraction in its own right. During the day, crowds typically gather in the store, watching through windows as the cheesemakers prepare batches of cheese.
A portion of the cheese curds used in the manufacturing process is set aside to sell directly to visitors at the retail store. The principal cheeses created and sold by Beecher’s are their Flagship and Flagship Reserve varieties “Just Jack”, a form of Monterey Jack cheese “Blank Slate”, a type of cream cheese unpasteurized, raw-milk versions of their Flagship cheeses, and different cheeses seasoned and flavored with spices and herbs. Some of their seasonal varieties have included cheeses similar to Brie.
Beecher’s also has other locations in the Puget Sound region, including a store at the Bellevue Square shopping center, SeattleTacoma International Airport, and Paine Field in Everett. The company’s locations accept mobile ordering through its own app.
Beecher’s products are sold in retail stores throughout the country at well-known artisanal cheese vendors such as the shops of Murray Klein and the international Artisanal Cheese retail company. Beecher’s also uses the services of PeriShip to ensure their products arrive to customers across the United States.
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Seven: Milling And Salting
After several flips, the cheese reaches a target acidity and whey content. Now the loaves get milledi.e. cut into small pieces that Midwesterners will proudly recognize as cheese curds.
The curds then get salted, both for seasoning and to start the ripening process and lock in that Cheddar and alpine flavor.
Cheese And Food Manufacturing
The cheese factory is housed in a small, glass-walled facility in Seattle’s Pike Place Market, on Pike Place between Stewart Street and Pine Street. The location includes a retail shop and a café that features cheese-based meals. Passers-by in the heavily touristed market can watch the cheese making process. Beecher’s produces over 500,000 pounds of cheese annually. Their manufacturing facility now operates twenty-four hours a day to keep up with their demand. The New York facility is significantly larger than Seattle’s and can produce over three tons of cheese a day.
Additionally, Beecher’s is in the process of developing new types of crackers, designed to not overpower the taste of the cheese with which they are paired.
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Where To Try And Buy Beecher’s Handmade Cheese
Maybe youve watched our talented cheesemakers at work in Seattles Pike Place Market or New Yorks Flatiron District while enjoying our delicious “Worlds Best” Mac & Cheese. Or perhaps youve passed through Sea-Tac or Paine Field airports and grabbed a warm, gooey grilled cheese sandwich before hopping on your next flight.
If you have yet to try Beechers Handmade Cheese and are wondering just how you can get your hands on this deliciousness, theres no need to panic. Many of our cheeses and frozen entrees are available at grocery stores and specialty cheese shops near you: You can also shop online for all of Beechers favoritesfrom our Worlds Best Mac & Cheese to our award-winning cheeses, gift collections, and sidesfor delivery anywhere in the Continental U.S. within just a few clicks.
Flagship Locations
Of course, if you have a chance to visit our Seattle or New York locations, we truly recommend stopping in for the full Beechers experience, where you can watch our cheesemakers at work as they make our famous cheese right before your very eyes. If youre visiting, dont let the lines turn you away. You can taste our delicious cheese curds and signature Flagship cheese while you wait, and its well worth the visit!
Eight: Into The Hoops
Once the curds have fully absorbed their salt, they’re ready to form blocks. 43 pounds of cheese get shoveled into each mold, called a hoop. Cheesecloth lines each hoop to prevent the cheese from sticking.
The filled hoops then get pressed in a machine at 60 pounds of pressure per square inch for at least six hours, long enough to condense the distinct curds into a unified block of cheese.
Pressing also squeezes out even more moisturethree of the 43 poundsto help build the dense texture we expect from Cheddar. Once pressed, the blocks get vacuum-sealed in plastic before getting sent off for aging.
Read Also: How Much Salt In Swiss Cheese
Here’s How To Make Beecher’s World Famous Grilled Cheese
Grilled cheese lovers line up at Beecher’s in the Pike Place Market and in New York City’s Flatiron District for the legendary sandwich, and guess what? You can make this gooey gem at home in just a few minutes, using just two ingredients: bread and cheese. Yup, as owner Kurt Dammeier explains in this quick video, less is a whole lot more when it comes to this famous creation.
When Dammeier opened Beecher’s in 2003, he was determined to show consumers how milk is transformed into cheese, and the process is on dramatic display behind windows lining the street. The then-revolutionary approach was a huge hit and Beecher’s branched out to prepared foods like a crazy popular mac-n-cheese. During the busy summer tourist season, the shop at Pike Place Market sells thousands of grilled cheese sandwiches a week.
Customers might be surprised to learn that the best seller is a study in simplicity, with two types of cheese Beecher’s Flagship and the Just Jack sandwiched between sturdy Como-style bread before being pressed in a panini grill. There’s no butter smeared on the outside of the bread because Dammeier said he want the sandwich to be extra crunchy, as a contrast to the melted cheese. “When I’m making them at home, I’ll turn them a few times, until they turn a dark, golden brown,” he said.
And the dish that customers usually buy to go with that grilled cheese? Creamy tomato soup, of course.
The Makings Of Beecher’s Amazing Flagship Cheese
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Kurt Dammeier wasn’t a cheesemaker, but he came from a long line of cheese lovershis great-grandfather was known to purchase Stilton by the wheel. After selling his family printing business, he decided to turn that lifelong love into a business of his own. He found a space in Seattle’s Pike Place Market, hired a cheesemaker, and tasted every cheese he could find in the city. He ended up with Flagship, an alpine Cheddar inspired by Washington State University’s Cougar Gold, and before long itand his new companybecame icons of the West Coast cheesemaking world.
At its base, Beecher’s Flagship is a Cheddar. It’s dense and a little crumbly thanks to the cheddaring process , and it carries a signature Cheddar twang. What sets Flagship apart from a typical Cheddar is that the characteristic sweetness of the style is offset by nutty, earthy flavors more typical of alpine cheese. Imagine the sharp kick of Cheddar plus the brown-butter notes of Comte and you can understand why we go crazy for Flagship.
When Dammeier opened Beecher’s Handmade Cheese in 2003, artisanal cheesemaking in America was still in its infancy. He wanted to sell American-made cheese at the shop alongside his own, but had trouble finding enough great cheese to fill a case. He recognized that if he wanted to see public interest in cheese grow, he’d need to be an educator as well as a business-owner.
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Why Buy Handmade Cheese
Cheese is relatively healthy and it provides some critical nutrients, such as calcium. You can add it to a variety of foods to boost the flavor and the nutrient profile. However, the processed cheeses available in most stores can be off putting.
A good handmade cheese is a viable choice. Beechers Handmade Cheese has experience making high-quality cheese. Everything is fresh and the ingredients are superior. A cheese that is handmade is a much sharper and purer flavor. It is also easier to cook with.
The process to make a cheese that is handmade tends to be greener. There is no huge factory mass producing the cheese. This makes cheese that is handmade more sustainable.
When a company makes this type of cheese, they have greater control over the ingredients and the quality. This is because they are making smaller batches at a time.
Handmade items also help communities. Like many small handmade businesses, Beechers has their own way of giving back to the world with some of the money that they earn from their cheeses.
Beecher’s Handmade Cheese Extra Aged Flagship 4 Year
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They say things get better with age, and in this case, thats true. If you love Beechers Flagship cheese, youre going to fall head over heels for this 4-year version, carefully aged for nearly half a decade to create a brand new treat with an even more delectable profile. Matured to the exact desired flavors, this older sibling of the original cheese is rich and nutty, with a slightly more pronounced tang and mouthwatering crunch.
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What Happens If Beecher’s Handmade Cheese Aged Flagship Cheese Is Out Of Stock And I Need To Give Specific Instructions
- Find Best Match: By default, your shopper will use their best judgement to pick a replacement for your item.
- Pick Specific Replacement: You can pick a specific alternative for the shopper to purchase if your first choice is out-of-stock.
- Don’t Replace: For items you’d rather not replace, choose “Don’t replace” to get a refund if the item is out of stock.
History Of Beechers Handmade Cheese
Kurt Beecher Dammeier was walking around Seattles Pike Place Market about 15 years ago. His goal on this day was to tackle some routine grocery shopping. As he made his way around the market, he realized that a local cheesemaker was not present. There were vendors for just about every other food option.
Eventually, one of the storefronts at this market became available. It did not take him long to buy this space so that he could create a place where people could buy quality cheese that is handmade.
He transformed the empty storefront into a cheese shop, cheesemaking facility and a café. People could come and buy a variety of cheeses that are artisanal, local and fresh. However, due to the transparent glass walls that surrounded the shop, people could also see the cheese being made.
The transparent glass walls turned out to be good for business. The fact that people could see the cheese being made gave people confidence that the cheese that they were buying was high in quality. It also gave them a glimpse into what it takes to make cheese.
Today, this company is known throughout the world due to their international recognition. At the Pike Place Market, they are one of the most loved places for people to pick up some cheese and watch their favorite cheese being made.
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