My introduction to Kennebec Cheesery was by way of Portland’s Wednesday farmers market in Monument Square. A farmstead producer, owner Jean Koons, specializes in chevre. Recently, the Koons were kind enough to host friend/photographer, Natalie Conn, and myself to a visit at their farm and facility in Sidney, ME.
We arrived after a little over an hour’s drive north from Portland - where slowly the landscape changes over to wide expanses of rolling hills - and were greeted by Jean and her husband, Peter, who were heading out to pasture to tend to their ten kids, just born in April. We felt welcome from the start, even the little goats anxiously vocalizing their pleasure to see us. It was time to move the fencing back so that the kids could feed on fresh, tall grass and wildflowers. Jean is a native of New Zealand, where this method of rotational grazing has its roots.
She noted how Queen Anne’s lace and clover are favorites while Peter pointed out that their tastes seem to change, one day drawn to a particular plant and the next, not having a taste for it at all. They began the operation six years ago, located on Peter's family farm, and this is the relationship these folks have with their animals… a scale of farming and production where they not only monitor the details of their goats’ behavior, but even name each one.
After just a year, the kids will begin producing milk. Milking starts in early spring and lasts until December or January, each goat producing slightly less than a gallon per day, leaving Jean with 14-16 gallons to work with. In November, on the verge of ‘drying off’ for the winter, they eat hay that comes from the farm, living in the hoop house that sits next to the milking parlor.
The milking parlor, cheesemaking room and aging room are housed in the same building which was built in 2006 with the help of friends, family and a grant from Farms for the Future, using recycled materials and lumber primarily sourced from their land.
Here, the mature goats grazed in a separate pasture from the kids. We observed the herd mentality of their movements. This includes a natural pecking order, which Jean said can be seen by how they organize themselves as they enter the milking parlor. Based on seniority, the goats file through a short set of railings from pasture to parlor.
Milking is accomplished with a simple pumping system that draws the milk into buckets in an adjacent room. From there, we each stepped into a pair of white rubber boots (brought from New Zealand) as we entered the production space.
The process of making her chevre ‘Cobbles’ (a staple in our home) takes five days and rotates throughout the week, three times a week. Simply put, the process goes like this: 1-innoculate, 2-scoop, 3-flip, 4-salt, and 5-roll and package.
Jean dishes the curd from the vat into cylindrical moulds and allows the whey to thoroughly drain into the tray below before filling them a second and final time. The moulds are covered until the next day when they are flipped, and on the fourth day, are removed from the moulds and salted.
On the last day, she sets out three plates (made by each of her three children – the laminated marker drawings we all made in school), each holding the ingredients for rolling: dill, cracked peppercorns, and herb de provence.
Jean was also working with inoculated Jersey milk that comes from a farm seven miles down the road – contrasting greatly from the goat milk with its rich yellow hue – dishing it into pyramid shaped moulds for her Cow Cobble cheese. This cheese came about when one of her distributors asked about a product she might be able to carry on throughout the winter (cow’s drying off period is much shorter than goat’s). The finished product is stored in olive oil, additional ingredients including basil/garlic/pine nut and roasted tomato/chili pepper.
She is experimenting with aged cheeses and in particular, shared with us her Caerphally project: Welsh hard, crumbly cows' milk wheels. These are stored in the aging room between two and three months alongside shelves lined with the Cobbles and jars of her cows' milk yogurt. As we spoke, Jean was brushing the wheels with a cream wax to seal in moisture and protect the rind.
As Jean continued to work, as to be expected, our conversation drifted to regulatory issues. For one, the matter of using raw milk for cheese production. Regulated by the FDA, raw milk cannot be used for cheese aged under 60 days. The state of Maine has made it easier for small producers by allowing 'heat-treated' (reaching 150 degrees for a half-hour) milk opposed to pasteurization...a middle ground that saves hundreds-of-thousands of dollars in equipment that simply isn't viable for facilities of this scale.
But the question of exactly how much regulation isn't a simple one. In New Zealand, for instance, she explained that regulations are the same no matter the size of the producer and a move in that direction might not be a bad thing. The worry is that people can get into it producing something like cheese not realizing the potential dangers involved and as she says, "One bad experience will destroy it for all of us."
Jean was one of the founders of the Maine Cheese Guild, which has worked with the state government to help shape regulations. She described it as 'very supportive and helpful,' providing classes and workshops at all levels. The recent re-posting on the website of their position on local food ordinances reiterates Jean's point in that it "believes that the best way for professional cheese makers to guarantee the quality of their product is being appropriately licensed...".
The amount of work Jean puts into Kennebec Cheesery is impressive. Besides the day-to-day production and tending to the herd (which also includes Kahtadin sheep for lamb meat), this is a business and running a business also means marketing.
She began selling at farmers' markets and at local stores, Uncle Dean’s Good Groceries and Barrels Community Market in Waterville, and has since expanded to restaurants. She expressed both her gratitude and hopefulness for farmers’ markets as they have continued to grow over recent years. Selling in Augusta, Waterville and Portland markets, she recognizes the value of such a direct method of marketing, allowing farmers and producers to think more creatively about their product due to the immediacy of the feedback they receive.
Kennebec Cheesery at Koons' Farm is a place where living and making cannot be separated. I encourage you Mainers to seek out their product, one in which they have a hand in every step, drawing a direct line from what goes into the goats' belly to what goes into ours. Elsewhere, find and support your local cheesemakers...people like the Koons whose diligence makes our lives just a little better.
Many thanks to Natalie for collaborating on this project, the first of more to come. Visit
www.natalieconnphotography.com for a full slideshow of her photographs.
