Cheese Carving at The American Cheese Society's Annual National Conference

I’ve been getting paid to work with food for about 5 years now, but have enjoyed playing with it for much longer. In July 2017 I had the opportunity to do both at a cheese carving competition in Denver during the American Cheese Society’s Annual National Conference.

The thought of carving cheese tickled me and I embraced such a whimsical experience, but nerves started to build as I only had 10 days to come up with a concept as well as figure out how to actually execute it. I’d never carved anything before, let alone cheese!!! What if I cut off too much?? What if my dimensions were skewed? What if it’s too top-heavy and the connection points break?? Aaaghhhh…..

I decided to go with a 2D bas-relief concept of a picture frame in which the scenery spills out into the foreground. Since the theme of the event was “Cheese with Altitude”, it seemed fitting to draw inspiration from the wide open spaces of Colorado. Yeah, mountains are pretty to look at and all that, but open spaces and the water provided from the snowpack really tie into what dairy animals need to have a great quality of life. What all of us need, really. I wanted my concept to segway into those kind of conversations rather than just being something pretty to look at.

The finished product, on its way to the people's choice award at the Festival of Cheeses.

All in all, it was a great experience. I had 5 hours to carve with the assistance and moral support of my co-worker Blake, self-proclaimed “hype man”. Always reliable for building enthusiasm, he drew in the local news reporters and told our story with gusto...and then some. Here’s an article about the cheese carving event.

In the midst of competition.