Page 33 - Ei 2018-2019 Catalog

Point Reyes Farmstead
Cheese Company
In 1959 Bob and Dean Giacomini purchased 720 acres and 120 milking Holsteins in West Marin County, about 1 hour north of San Francisco. They grew the farm into one of the region’s most successful fluid-milk operations, milking upwards of 500 animals each day and selling all the milk
to their local creamery-processor. Bob always wanted to make cheese but didn’t have the time
or resources to put toward diversifying. In the late 1990’s, their adult daughters – Karen, Diana, Lynn and Jill – came together (and back to the farm where they were raised) to make Bob’s dream a reality. In August 2000, the family launched Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Company with the production of the first vat of Original Blue Cheese. They were the first to make classic-style Blue Cheese in California and have since expanded their nationally-marketed and award-winning product line with Toma and Bay Blue.
The consistency of flavor and
quality of the cheese made
at Point Reyes Farmstead is
maintained by first producing
the most delicious milk
possible. Great cheese can only be produced from great milk, which is a direct result of controlling what the cows eat and how they are raised. The closed herd of cows (they are all born and raised on the farm) graze on pastures during the green season, approximately December through June each year. The remaining months (California’s limited water resources don’t allow for field irrigation in Summer and Fall), the primary component of the animals’ diet is rye-grass silage that is harvested on the farm late each Spring. Throughout the year, to maximize the health and well-being of the herd, the Giacominis supplement the farm’s grass
by sourcing local, all-natural, by-product commodities that are both nutritious and environmentally-friendly. Currently the animals’ diet contains a mixture of recycled whey from the creamery, cottonseed, almond hulls, rolled corn and brewer’s grain from Lagunitas Brewing Company... likely why cheese from Point Reyes Farmstead pairs so well with craft beer!
In 2010, the Giacomini family opened The Fork, a culinary and educational
center, offering farm-to-table educational experiences for
trade and consumer customers.
Point Reyes Farmstead is committed to practicing as many sustainable farming practices as possible. The most significant example is the production of renewable energy through a methane digester. Using
a gravity flow system, the animal manure
in the barns is flushed twice daily into an underground trough. The collected waste
is then sent through a separator where the solids are separated from the liquids. The solids are used for compost on the farm (bedding for the animals and fertilizer for
the fields). The liquid manure is stored in a pond covered by a balloon tarp, whereby the chemical byproduct, methane, is captured and funneled to an engine that converts the gas to usable energy that powers the dairy and creamery buildings. Additional benefits of the farm’s technology include re-use of the liquid manure as fertilizer for the pastures, substantial savings on propane use and of course, the elimination of methane gas into the atmosphere.
2018 is another milestone year
for Point Reyes Farmstead as the
company has opened its second
creamery in Petaluma, about 20
miles east in Sonoma County.
The new location is home to the
production and aging facility for the
company’s pasteurized cheeses, specifically Toma and Bay Blue. Original Blue, the brand’s flagship, raw milk cheese, continues to be made on the farm in Point Reyes. Packaging and distribution of the full product line will move to the Petaluma location by midyear.
Diana, Lynn and Jill now own and run the company that continues to be recognized nationally as an award-winning producer of hand-crafted, artisan cheese.
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CHEESE • CHEESE