A very solid 4 1/2 stars I haven't been here in years. Since I was in the area, I decided to…read moreswing by. Their cheese is very good, having won awards from the California State fair, to nine medals, including gold, at the 2026 World cheese championships. Yes, it's good. you've probably had it, but never knew it. they sell their cheese in bulk to food service providers, restaurants, and other retail brands that package and sell the cheese under their own names
It's a great place. Everything from souvenirs, to snacks, wines, jams, Peet's coffee, they have a small café, and of course, cheese, cheese, and even more cheese.
They do offer tours, but they are limited. However, you can ask somebody from the register, to come over and turn on the "Moo-vie." hosted by a cartoon cow, it covers the cheese, making process from farm, forward. Yes, it's a little "cheesy", (pun intended) but it's cute, and it's interesting. There are pictures throughout the visitor center, and they also have a small area upstairs, that also talks about the cheese making process, and you can look down into the factory.
As I mentioned, there are lots of cheeses for sale. They also have samples. They have "squeakers" which is what they call their cheese, curds, many different varieties of their cheeses, and other gourmet cheeses from other companies. I bought a small apple, walnut, smoked cheddar, which was very flavorful, and then I also decided to take a gamble, and got a 1 pound block of Hilmar habanero pepper jack cheese. The 1 pound block of cheese cost under seven bucks. Extremely reasonable for such a good quality cheese. Yes, it definitely packs a punch, (hey, it's habanero....) but the creaminess of the cheese helps, mellow out the habanero a bit. You can also cook with it, like a cheeseburger, or scrambled eggs, etc.... And that also helps mellow out the habanero. it is definitely toward the higher end of what I like for in spicy, but it is definitely good.
At the café, they actually sell a cheese chowder, which is supposed to be excellent. I don't think my poor system could've handled it, so instead, I got one of their grilled cheese sandwiches, the zesty tomato, which was Monterey Jack, sun-dried, tomato, tomato, basil pesto, on sourdough bread. Yes, still rich, but the tomato help helped cut the richness. The only reason I'm taking off a half star, was because the bread was a bit overdone on the sandwich. Not enough that I had them redo it, but I could definitely taste it a little bit. The amazing taste of the sandwich. Helped take away the overdone taste of the bread.
A great place to visit, I will be back. Thanks.
