Oh, Wisconsin

In August 2024, I went to Madison Wisconsin and saw three of our suppliers, Underground Meats, Uplands Cheese and Widmer's Cheese. There are so many great producers of specialty food items in Wisconsin!!

First up; Underground Meats - Madison - Underground is a small producer of fine handcrafted cured meats and salami. We carry 9 of the products, all are great. They partner with local farmers for their heritage breed pork, always humanely raised, antibiotic and hormone free. They make sure they support small midwestern farmers. They are a small company of nine people. They mix all seasonings by hand per batch, have a special drying process and a curing room that adds to creating traditional artisan products. We have 9 different selections from UM, the most popular ones are the Tuscan, Calabrian and Black Garlic salami as well as the ‘Nduja spreadable salami. For all the home pizza makers we also have their Pepperoni, which is amazing.

Next up: Uplands Dairy. 35 miles due west of Madison outside Dodgeville is the most awarded American dairy. I met with the co-owner and recently confirmed Master Cheese Maker Andy Hatch. While at the dairy, Andy and myself chose the Capella Cheese profile for all our Pleasant Ridge Reserve we sell year-round. We settled on a 9 month age, firm but not hard, with all the characteristics of an Alpine style cheese, nuttyness, brown butter, hints of tropical fruits and grassy. Andy only makes Pleasant Ridge Reserve while the cow’s are  in pastures, early spring through mid-fall. His aging rooms were filled with the three time winner of the “Best of Show” award at the American Cheese Society, Pleasant Ridge Reserve.  Uplands have started making their famous Rush Creek Reserve and have a ripening room solely dedicated to it. While I was there, I was able to give them our pre-order, and we will be getting a great supply of this highly allocated cheese. Rush Creek Reserve is highly sought after. It is a Vacherin Mont d’Or style cheese, super soft ripening and wrapped in birch wood, and only available in the last couple months of the year. We are looking forward to getting this years allotment.

I headed to Theresa, a small town north of Milwaukee to see Widmer’s Cheese Cellars. Joey Widmer has now taken over from his father, Master Cheese Maker Joe Widmer, the family’s 100 year old cheese company. We get their 1 year and the 10 year aged cheddar cheeses, Brick cheese, the cheese that all great Detroit style pizza is made with. I was allowed to watch them make the brick cheese, the name comes from the actual brick they use to weigh down the cheese molds. It was great to talk with Joey and learn about him, the com[any and cheeses they make. We attested some cheeses I was not familiar with and I chose the Butterkase cheese to add to our lineup, it is a full fat semi-firm cheese that is rich in flavor, great as a table cheese, makes a great sandwich and melts so well. I left with a bag of cheese to enjoy as I made my way around.

All in all, it was a great trip to see Uplands, Underground Meats and Widmer’s, three of our favorite suppliers. I also got to see some old friends from our time in NYC and eat some great local food. I will definitely be back!!