1 POINT REYES FARMSTEAD CHEESE COMPANY December 2014/January 2015 65 Meandering cows temporarily block your way as you climb a private single-track road off Highway 1 to the Giacomini Family lands. After a mile of slow driving, it’s a shock when you turn a corner and behold a sizable dairy operation, as well as The Fork, an attractive new facility designed for educational and entertainment events. Bob Giacomini and his wife, Dean, bought a Point Reyes dairy farm in 1959 and watched both herds and four daughters grow. The girls went off to college and moved away, but in the 1990s, the family hit a watershed moment: “It came down to either we come back, or my parents would downsize and sell off entirely,” says daughter Jill Giacomini Basch. Come back they did, but with the plan to sell off most of the herd and start making cheese. “Our two requirements were that it had to be a cheese we liked and used in our own kitchens,” says Basch. “We talked to pros, and it was unanimous: ‘blue, blue, blue.’ Their reason was there was very little handcrafted artisan blue cheese at the time.” So in 2000, they unveiled Original Blue, a classic raw milk cheese that is aged five months. “Of course, once we started the investment, what we heard was unanimous,” recalls Basch. “‘Why did you make blue cheese? It’s the hardest to make, and you’re limiting yourself.’ That just reinforced our stubbornness.” Many awards later, the family has expanded with a more mellow blue, as well as Toma, a semi-hard buttery flavored cheese, and mozzarella. The latter has such a short shelf life that it is only available locally and, of course, on tours. “It’s the closest you’ll come to drinking a glass of our milk,” says Basch. In 2010, the family added agri-tourism to the mix, and a visit here is an informative two-hour look at the cow-to-cheese process. After petting baby calves, viewing the milking parlor, seeing new wheels of Original Blue and a tasting session at The Fork, you’ll never take cheese for granted. CHEESY BITES Farmstead, milk-based blue is their number one. VIBE Professional dairy looking forward to the future. BOOTS OR HEELS You can get away with flats in the barns and on the gravel and hay. TOUR/TASTING OPTIONS Prebooked farm tours, farm dinners and hands-on classes. A selection of cheese from Point Reyes including Mozzarella, Bay Blue, Original Blue and Toma. 14700 HIGHWAY 1, POINT REYES STATION; 800/591-6878; POINTREYESCHEESE.COM ERIC WOLFINGER
South Bay Accent - Dec 2014/Jan 2015
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