I contemplated removing dairy from my diet for a few weeks, but there’s word that Rhode Island’s own cheesemakers have won a World Championship Cheese Contest:
A week and a half ago judges at the 2008 World Championship Cheese Contest, held in Madison, WI crowned a ricotta made by Providence cheesemakers as “best of class”. The all-natural whole milk ricotta is one of several cheese items produced by Providence Specialty Product Inc, a little-know dairy processor on the Westside of town.
Though in the past Providence Specialty Products has almost exclusively been shipped out-of-state, the family-owned company is now pushing to reach Rhode Island markets. Their feta, fresh mozzarella, ricotta and a number of artisan small-batch specialties, are becoming available in local stores under both the Benevento and Narragansett Creamery labels.
The winning ricotta received 99.2 points (out of 100) to trump the other entrants. The texture and taste of the ricotta was described by one evaluator as “fresh, gentle and glowing with the sweetness of milk.”
Congrats to the cheese, and to its makers. If you want to try some of the award-winning cheese, I know where you can get it.