With less than one month remaining until the renowned 2023 United States Championship Cheese Contest, dairy manufacturers across the country are ready for a robust competition for the coveted title of U.S. Champion.
Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association, proud host of the contest, announced that 197 makers of cheese, butter, yogurt and dry dairy ingredients in 35 states submitted 2,249 products across 113 classes for evaluation.
“This impressive number of entries shows how meaningful this competition is to the nation’s dairy craftsmen and women,” says WCMA’s Kirsten Strohmenger, contest manager. “When customers see the golden contest seal on a winner’s product on store shelves, they know it means true quality and value, thanks to the skill of our experienced judges and the rigorous technical standards they employ.”
On Feb. 21-22 at Resch Expo in Green Bay, a team of highly qualified dairy processing experts from across the U.S. will carefully evaluate each product and calculate a precise score based on attributes such as flavor, body, texture, salt, color, finish, packaging and others. These preliminary rounds of judging will be open to the public from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on both days.
Gold, silver and bronze medals will be awarded to the three highest-scoring entries in each of this year’s 113 distinct classes. A ceremony announcing the 2023 U.S. Champion will be closed to the public, but cheese lovers everywhere can watch the event live online: https://uschampioncheese.org/.
Marianne McMillan says
How can I get a list of the top 3 winners in each category so that I can do a specialty cheese sampling featuring some of the winners?
Pam Jahnke says
The top 3 winners will be available 2/23 at the conclusion of the judging. Follow the event at: https://uschampioncheese.org/2023-united-states-championship-cheese-contest/