Uplands Cheese Company

Pleasant Ridge Reserve, the signature cheese of the Uplands Cheese Company, may be one of the single most perfect hard cows milk cheese made in the US. A traditionally made cheese in the style of alpine cheeses from southwestern France, Pleasant Ridge Reserve is made only during the months when cows graze on grasses, sweet clover, and wild herbs, giving their milk a depth of flavor not usually found in most cheeses from year-round milkers grazing on silage and grain.This award winning cheese (just go to their website to see how many accolades they've earned...it is simply awesome) is a favorite both here in the Midwest and all over the country. For those of us lucky to live in Chicago, it is on the menu of many local restaurants, who use it both on cheese plates and in more complex dishes. During a recent visit to Hot Chocolate on Damen, for example, I had a Pleasant Ridge Reserve-filled brioche. I think this cheese is better to eat out of hand than to incorporate in a recipe - with heating, many of the subtleties of texture and flavor are lost.Seek it out. And if you do find it in a cheese shop, make sure the piece you get does not touch plastic. Because plastic is the enemy of all cheese. If it must touch plastic, make sure you get it out as soon as possible and put in proper cheese paper or wax paper and foil. And eat it right away - it isn't going to get any better in your fridge.Uplands isn't open to the public, but if you call ahead they may just accomodate you. The trip through the lush, rolling hills of southern Wisconsin is an agrarian's dream.

I am not usually a cheese or wine person. But I had dinner with the Clandestino group (see my Clandestino review) and they offered this cheese as an appetizer. OH MY GOODNESS. I think I felt a little explosion in my mouth, it was sooooooooo good. This cheese just melted in my mouth and the flavor was outstanding! Seriously, it was like buttery cheese. Maybe the cheese tasted so fresh because the owner brought it with him from WI to our dinner? I'm so happy I had a chance to try it, otherwise I might have never heard about this company!

I agree with the other reviewers about Pleasant Ridge. I buy it at the Cheese Board in Berkeley, CA, where it's a house favorite. I brought it home one time and loved it. When I went back for more, it took us a very long time to identify the cheese whose name I remembered as "something like happy valley." I won't forget again.

Pleasant Ridge Reserve is perfect for relaxing with a glass of white wine and letting the flavors of the cheese dance over ones pallette. It is simply the best cheese I have ever had. After tasting it , it's know wonder it has won so many awards. It nice to know there are still true artisans out there willing to take the time , expense and effort to make something truly amazing.