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Cheesemaking Workshops

Appleton Creamery workshops

2024  fall and winter Cheesemakinng Workshops

 

Cheese Gifts CapercaillieLOCATION & TIME

All classes will be held  in the commercial kitchen at the United Farmers’ Market –  19 Miller Street, Belfast Maine ( on the Miller Street side) from 10 am. to 4 pm.

Our Milk Sources – Please Note:  We are sourcing the milk for our classes from the Jersey cows at Springdale Farm in Waldo Maine and goat from local farms seasonally as it becomes available.

Information for all workshop attendees:

Please wear clean, non-shedding, clothes, a hat or hair covering, waterproof shoes (cheese is a water sport!). Please bring an apron or lab coat.
Bring a cooler to take home your cheeses!

Bring a lunch.

Mozzarella and Ricotta

November 6 –  Mozzarella and Ricotta are two iconic cheeses of Italy, and so easy to make! You will learn how to make both in this half day, hands-on class. $100See location and other information at top of workshop list.  Sign up here.

Basics of Home Cheesemaking- Two Day Workshop

Basics of Home CheesemakingNovember  13 & 14. A hands-on workshop in basic home cheese making. In this two-day workshop we’ll be using simple equipment you may already have at home to make a jack cheese the first day, press overnight, then finish the second. In addition, we will also make feta, yogurt, a lactic cheese, quick mozzarella, and ricotta, depending on the interests of the class. This workshop will concentrate on basic cow cheeses using Springdale Farm cow milk but will also delve briefly into goat cheese. Basic use of ripening cultures and rennet and milk chemistry will be covered. You will go home with cheese that you’ve made!
$300 , $500/couple  – See location and other information at top of workshop list. Sign up here.

Cheesy Christmas/Holiday Gifts

CHEESE FOR THE HOLIDAYS CAPERCAILLIEDec. 11 , if all space fill we will offer a second class Dec. 12. n this class, we will make feta and a soft cheese in the morning, and we will then marinate in olive oil in jars in the afternoon. If time, we will also make cheese balls.We will have some jars for the class. If you have any special ones at home, bring them! Pint size, wide-mouth is best. Bring an apron, hair covering, and lunch, as well as a fancy jar or two to fill.
$150 – See location and other information at top of workshop list. Sign up here.


We’re always  interested to know what sort of workshops you are interested in.  We prefer to be contacted by email . Shoot us an email  appletoncreamery@gmail.com with your interest and questions,  and to be added to our mailing list.


Capercaillie Consulting

Consulting Services:

● How to Make A Living Running a Farmstead Creamery
● Calves, Kids, Manure & Whey – Planning for the Unexpected on a Farmstead Creamery
● Direct Sales- What You Need to Know to Last at a Farmers’ Market
● Training the Next Generation – How to Build a Successful On-Farm Apprentice Program
● Planning for Senior Farming: Strategies to keep going
● Finding your Niche: what cheese to make and where to sell it

Learn more about my consulting services here.


Skills & Expertise:

● Barn design;
● Creamery set-up & layout;
● Goat management, health & breeding; kid rearing
● Packaging / merchandising;
● Food Law including Maine, Federal and FSMA requirements;
● Equipment evaluation, selection and operation;
● Human Resources Management and mentorship
● Cheese Recipe development

Capercaillie Consulting

Stay in the know – Get on our mailing list-Please drop us an email and we’ll add you to our list.


 

Caitlin Hunter Bio

Caitlin-Hunter-groundbreakerCaitlin Hunter got her first goats in 1979, in another life, in another part of Maine. By 1981, she had begun making cheese and selling it at a local farmers’ market she started. In those days, cheese could legally be made in your kitchen with a Home Food Processing License. She developed her initial line of soft cheeses in those first years.

Fast forward a few years, to 1990, to Appleton, a second marriage, a new flock of goats. A few years were spent building the barn, the herd, the brand, and final state licensing for Appleton Creamery was realized in September 1994. Our first farmers’ markets were the Belfast Farmers’ Market and the Camden Farmers’ Market in 1995, and we never looked back. With help from MOFGA, Caitlin and a handful of other cheese makers came together and launched the Maine Cheese Guild in 2003. With the introduction of advanced cheese making classes in Maine through the Guild, the skill set of Maine cheese makers soared, and Maine artisan cheese took off.

For the last 16 years, Caitlin has taught cheese making classes, both in her dairy and around the state, and welcomed apprentices on her farm. In 2020, with  thirty plus farm years of farm life taking their toll, Caitlin was forced to give up milking goats due to advanced arthritis, and closed Appleton Creamery to enjoy retired life with her husband Brad and offer her knowledge to the industry by hanging out her shingle as Capercaillie Consulting.

Appleton Creamery in Winter
Appleton Creamery in Winter

In August 2021  she moved to  Belfast Maine with her husband Brad, a few hens,  her favorite rooster and pet animal pals Holly, Thistle and William.