Deb Allen and her daughter, Caroline
It’s exciting for us to have found a fabulous cheese maker before she has become widely known. We predict that someday soon you will hear about Deb Allen’s Gilded Fern Farm cheese because, to coin a phrase – “cream always rises to the top.”
Year-round they ship gift baskets of fresh cheese anywhere in the lower 48. (click here)
If you are lucky enough to be within driving distance of Concord, you will find the farm 15 miles west. When you consider the cost of a trip to France, it’s a comparatively short trip to find a variety of cheeses, including buttery fresh, soft cheeses sent directly from heaven (in our opinion).
Gone Gone Groovy made from goat milk
Their farm store is open daily and in the summer they sell at 3 farmers markets – Contoocook, Bedford and Canterbury.
The driveway behind the sign is hardpack, but the farm itself is easy to find on a well-traveled road.
The farm store is on the left and the make room is behind the double doors.
Deborah Allen was a veterinarian for nearly 30 years but she had wanted to make cheese since she was a child. Her father had learned to make it at home and Deb was fascinated by the process of transforming milk into a solid block of food.
Triple Creme Tabouret at the Canterbury Farmer’s Market
When she turned 50, (4 years ago) she finally found the time to start making cheese and it became her all-consuming passion.
Deb Allen
She wanted to make sheep milk cheese, but she couldn’t find a source. So, she bought 4 East Fresians – 3 girls and 1 ram. That gave her enough milk to start making cheese.
Now, she has 16 sheep and she is milking 8 of them (when they will let her – they stop in October and nothing will convince them otherwise.)
The one in the middle with the brown coat is a ram she rented for breeding. (He appears to be exhausted from his efforts.)
Even with the increase in her herd, she only gets about 1 1/2 gallons of milk/day which would amount to 1 (7 pound) wheel of Manchego every 4 days. So, she purchases fresh cow milk and goat milk from nearby farms in order to make the cheeses she loves.
It sounds logical to do that, but the learning curve has been daunting. As she put it, “When you know how to make a cheese with sheep milk, you do not know how to make that same cheese with cow milk or goat milk. It’s entirely different.”
To learn, she apprenticed with another cheese maker for 8 months, took numerous classes, read books, watched videos and consulted with experts. It’s an ongoing process.
The Farm Store
There is a viewing window! (We love when customers can see how their cheese is made.)
The lid happened to be up on the bulk tank, but the view is usually unobstructed.
The list of cheeses available is quite remarkable. Deb likes to change things up and try new ones all the time, so you never know what you will find in addition to the basics.
In the summer, when the milk is flowing, she makes raw sheep milk yogurt (Ewe-gurt). It’s a whopping 9% cream and so thick, it’s Greek-style without straining. It comes in glass containers which can be returned at the farm or at their farmer’s market locations.
Bottles of yogurt, etc. ready for the farmer’s market
And did we mention the ice cream?
Flavors include Blueberry-Thyme, Strawberry-Mint, Chocolate-Mint, Coffee, Pumpkin Spice and Ca-Cow Gelato
The Source
It all starts with the milk. Deb’s favorite part of the day is milking the sheep.
This ramp leads up to the milking parlor
This is the nicest milking parlor we have ever seen. It’s no wonder the sheep are willing to climb the ramp!
The Make Room
The bulk tank. It holds the milk until it’s time to make the cheese.
The pasteurizer
Many small batches are made in pots which any home cheese maker could use.
Drying rack for the soft cheeses
The plastic covers keep the humidity where she wants it to ripen the soft cheeses.
You can see a bag of curds draining in the background.
Alyssa is an apprentice from the WOOF program, staying at the farm for 6 weeks to learn to make cheese.
Bill is a former chef and a current bread baker who is coming to the farm to learn to make cheese.
Crottin
Geotrichum is added to the milk to create this wrinkled surface on the Crottin.
The Cave
Deb pointed out to us that making cheese is simple, but taking care of it from that point on is not. Her cave is located in the basement of the house where it’s easier to maintain the right temperature and humidity.
She doesn’t use wax because she loves the interaction she has with the cheese as it ages.
Manchegos. They are initially wiped down every few days and then about every 3 weeks.
The blues on the top shelf look unusually appealing because they were made in homemade molds.
Caprinos are made from a combination of cow and goat milk. They age for 7 months.
The Coolbot keeps the room cool and the humidifier keeps it moist.
A Beautiful Film
Caroline Allen
Deb’s daughter(17), has made a film showing a day in the life of her mother of making Manchego. We highly recommend it as a learning tool.
