Mahoe cheesemakers named champions

Far North cheesemaker Jesse Rosevear reckons it was the first time his dad Bob had been lost for words.

But he had plenty to be excited about, after all - other son Jacob had just been named the country's supreme cheesemaker at the Cuisine Champions of Cheese Awards on Tuesday.

And the Rosevear-family-owned Mahoe Cheese factory, at Oromahoe, took out the Cuisine Champion Artisan Award for smaller producers with its Very Old Edam.

Organisers said the artisan award was on a par with the Yealands Estate Champion of Champions Award for large cheesemakers, which went to Meyer Vintage Gouda, produced by Meyer Gouda Cheese.

Jesse Rosevear, himself a dab hand at making quality cheeses, said the awards had "blown away" the firm.

The company won the supreme cheese award in 2000, but having big brother Jacob named NZ Cheese School Champion Cheesemaker of the Year at just 33 was amazing.

"We are all just stoked. There are so many great cheesemakers out there and so many wonderful cheeses, that to get these awards is really unbelievable," Jesse said.

"It was a real surprise but well deserved though as Jacob works very, very hard through the whole process of making the cheese and doesn't leave anything to chance."

The brothers have grown up with cheese in their veins after parents Bob and Anna started the business in 1986.

Jesse said being around cheese their whole life made them know what made a good cheese. They had also benefited enormously from Bob and Anna's supreme knowledge.

Jesse said his parents were over the moon when they learned of the win, but Bob was unusually quiet.

"He did a few fist pumps and just pointed at [Jacob], I don't think I've ever seen him lost for words like that. He and [Anna] were overwhelmed," Jesse said.

More than 400 cheeses were entered in this year's competition and the winners were announced at a gala dinner at The Langham in Auckland on Tuesday night.

The judging was led for the fourth year running by one of Australasia's most respected cheese judges, Russell Smith, who noted New Zealand's Dutch-style cheeses as one of the stand-outs in the specialty cheese industry.

"The calibre of New Zealand's Dutch-style cheeses is always high which can make them a challenge to judge," Mr Smith said.

"The Mahoe Farmhouse Very Old Edam and Meyer Vintage Gouda were clear winners for all the judges, illustrating the extraordinary talent of these young second-generation cheesemakers."

The artisan award was set up to celebrate cheesemakers who produce less than 20 tonnes a year.

"[Mahoe's Very Old Edam] was a stand-out winner and a prime example of a beautifully crafted Dutch cheese," he said.

"The intense tropical fruit flavour and the lingering, clean aftertaste combine with the light crunchy crystals to create an absolute taste delight."