The Dessert Course

This Valentine's Day, feature artisan or specialty cheeses in a unique dessert for your loved one! 

Goat Cheese Chocolate Truffles    Ricotta Blintzes with Lingonberry Syrup  Apple Crostada with Cheddar Cheese Crust Hook's Wisconsin Blue Cheese Cheesecake With Port Wine Poached Pears, Port Caramel And Candied Walnuts     Photo: Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board Email recipe to a friend * required fields * * * * * * Your Message

Happy February to all! I've been enjoying kidding updates from farms near and far, and wintry weather updates from around the nation. I hope the frosty days of winter will soon break into spring wherever you are.

The ACS board met for its January meeting just after the Fancy Food Show in San Francisco. This meeting traditionally focuses on the budget, conference updates, and specific plans to achieve organizational annual goals. There are some exciting milestones to report from the meeting:

• Our Montr�al conference and competition planning is on track, and is looking more exciting each week. Final plans are in place to ensure seamless delivery of your cheeses across the border. Educational sessions will form a compelling and informative program. Registration opens May 4 -- reserve your space by June 1 to lock in special early bird rates!

• I am happy to report that based on the incredible work done by so many over the course of 6 years, the Cheese Education Certification project now has the green light to move forward into development for delivery in 2012 or 2013. Although ACS is not able to fund costs associated with exam development (estimated at $85,000), we will provide staff resources to administer and support the exam. A sponsorship team is being assembled to seek donors, sponsors, and underwriters to advance this important initiative. If you are interested in participating in this effort, please contact Rebecca Sherman at the ACS office.

• Based on member feedback, our inaugural American Cheese Week will be held October 1 - 9, 2011. This first-ever nationwide celebration of North American cheeses is designed to shine a spotlight on the cheese community in your region. How will you celebrate?  

• Our focus on education in 2011 has already yielded some exceptional results. On Monday, February 7, the first online Cheesemaker Winter Workshop was held with over 50 attendees and more than 60 questions answered. Dr. D.J. D'Amico from the Vermont Institute for Artisan Cheese presented a 90-minute session on "Risk Reduction in Cheesemaking Facilities." The session received rave reviews, and you can watch the recorded session on our website next week. Don't miss the next workshop. "Preparing a HACCP Plan," on February 25 at noon EST.

• Cheesemakers, please be on the lookout for communications from ACS Research Intern Adam Dworetsky. Adam, a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University with a degree in Economics Management, is embarking on the most comprehensive survey ever conducted to gauge the breadth and depth of the North American artisan, farmstead, and specialty cheesemaking community. Please take a few moments to respond to Adam when he contacts you. ACS has received an increasing number of calls from national media regarding the current regulatory climate, and possible changes on the horizon. As we are considered the go-to source for promoting and supporting North American cheese, your assistance with our survey will help us play this role even better.

Thanks for all that you do to promote and support North American cheese!

Christine Hyatt

ACS President

I hope you'll consider the great value of ACS membership and our Annual Conference as you are renewing your dues and planning your trip to Montr�al this summer. Let's say that instead of joining us in Montr�al, you had decided to attend the recent World Economic Forum in Davos....  First, you'd have to be invited to become a member by a current member of the Forum. ACS has no such pretentions -- all cheese lovers are welcome and encouraged to be a part of our community! The most basic level of membership in the Forum, which will garner you one invitation to Davos, is $52,000. ACS gives you a wealth of benefits at the basic $190 Individual Member rate: resources on our website, networking opportunities, news and information on cheese goings-on, free webinars, a chance to enter our prestigious competition, discount programs, scholarship opportunities, and more. Not to mention the cach� of being an ACS member.

But back to Davos... Next, add in the registration fee for the event -- $19,000 just to get in the door. If you want to escape the masses and hob-knob with the people with whom one must hob-knob, break out your check book and become an "Industry Associate" ($137,000). Want to bring a colleague? You'll need to upgrade to "Industry Partner" ($263,000). Suppose you'd like to bring five people to the event. ACS offers Corporate Members the opportunity to designate five employees to receive benefits, and to register an unlimited number of employees for our Annual Conference. Well, there's none of that at the World Economic Forum. To bring five colleagues, you'll need to become a "Strategic Partner" of the Forum ($527,000) plus pay the $19,000 registration fee for each person (price tag: $622,000). And then there are the travel costs ($11,000 for a first class flight to Zurich, $70,000 for a private flight, $3,400 for that helicopter from Zurich to Davos)...and the chalet rental ($14,000 for a week) and the parties and meals (Google's party will run about $250,000). You can calculate the full damage by reading this New York Times piece. 

Of course, in Montr�al, I can't promise you'll bump into George Soros at the Westin hotel bar, or that Dmitry Medvedev will present the keynote, or even that Snooki will serve drinks at the Opening Reception. But you might run into David Gremmels sipping a negroni at the bar, rub shoulders with Laura Werlin at a tasting session, or sample goat cheese with Conference Co-Chair John Eggena. So, you know up front what you're getting into. What I can promise is an event in a great city, with amazing programming, fun events, all the cheese you can eat, and great value for your investment...which I promise will be well under $622,000.

Tongue-in-cheek comparisons aside, ACS genuinely appreciates our members' commitment to the cheese community. Read on for ways we are working to help make your conference experience in Montr�al both amazing and affordable. 

Nora Weiser

Executive Director   

• 2011 Conference & Competition: This year marks ACS's first conference in Canada, and it affords exciting new opportunities for sponsors. Sponsors will reach the audiences they always count on, but they will also have the chance to explore new opportunities with a receptive and excited cheese community in Canada. 

• Winter Workshops for Cheesemakers: ACS is offering a series of online educational workshops for cheesemakers focused on important technical issues such as risk reduction, product liability, and the development of HACCP plans. 

• American Cheese Week: Launching in October of 2011, sponsors can get noticed by supporting this week of events and educational outreach in every region of the country. Help ACS increase visibility for the North American cheese community!