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53 °F Forecast | Road Cams Friday, January 28, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend October 4, 2004 David Gremmels, co-owner of the Rogue River Valley Creamery in Central Point, stands in a �cave� of aging blue cheese at the creamery. Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Creamery draws world attention Central Point’s Rogue Creamery says supplies of its gold-medal-winning Rogue River Blue cheese are going fast as its fame grows By JONEL ALECCIA Mail Tribune David Gremmels cradles the half-wheel of blue cheese like it’s a precious thing, perhaps because it is. Perched atop a metal platter, the innocuous hunk of milk and mold represents the last of a dwindling supply of award-winning cheese that has riveted world attention on the tiny Rogue Creamery. Only six wheels of the $22-a-pound cheese remained at the creamery two weeks ago, just after Rogue River Blue won a gold medal at the World Cheese Awards in London. "They’re already allocated," said Gremmels, 43, co-owner of the creamery. "We sold out immediately." Advertisement Indeed, of the 900 wheels of Rogue River Blue produced last year, only a few dozen are left. DPI Northwest, the regional distributor for Rogue Creamery, had the largest remaining supply, but even that’s going fast. Of 96 wheels on hand Friday morning, only 63 were left by Friday night, said Crystal Drohen, a company sales representative. "All of their cheese, it seems like as soon as they come in, they’re right out the door," Drohen observed. "It seems that Rogue can’t even meet the demand sometimes." Gremmels would agree. As requests for Rogue Creamery cheese skyrockets at farmer’s markets, trendy cheese shops and high-end restaurants from San Francisco to New York, staffers at the 70- year-old creamery are turning out more blues, gorgonzolas and cheddars than ever. Meanwhile, the list of Rogue Valley residents who want dibs on certain cheeses has grown to more than 400 in two years. Laurel Miller, a 45-year-old business coach from Ashland, says she’ll drop everything and head to Central Point when it’s time to pick up her share. "Right now, I probably have four different varieties of Rogue Creamery cheese in my refrigerator," confesses Miller. "I became a total promoter and junkie." To satisfy the desires of Miller and other cheese-lovers, Gremmels and his crew will spend 30 days in the next two months making 3,000 wheels of Rogue River Blue, more than triple last year’s production. "We are making it day and night," Gremmels said. "We’ve hired four more cheese makers. We’re ordering 90,000 pounds of milk a week." Rogue River Blue, a cheese wrapped in local grape leaves macerated in local pear brandy, is a top seller right now. But the Creamery’s new Smoked Oregon Blue also won a gold medal, and a new Kalamata Olive Garlic Cheddar took home a silver. The acclaim has been sudden and welcome for Gremmels and his partner, Cary Bryant, 39, who bought the creamery in July 2002 from its founders, the Vella family. "It’s the biggest accomplishment any cheese maker could achieve," Gremmels said. Success has meant that the creamery recently became profitable for the first time. "This year, we’ll definitely be in the black," Gremmels said. It also has meant that Gremmels and Bryant are encouraged about expanding and improving their line of cheeses, starting with the most important ingredient — milk. The creamery has a contract with Bonanza View dairy in Klamath Falls, where 300 cows have been reserved to provide organic, sustainable milk. "Now we know our cows," Gremmels said. Upcoming changes include plans to add about 3,000 square feet of blue cheese "caves" — space used to age and store the ripening cheese. In addition, Bryant, a microbiologist, will continue to tinker with unusual varieties of cheese molds, while Gremmels focuses on ever-wider marketing. Recently, the pair launched a "cheese club," where members are treated to new offerings as they’re produced. The ascent of the creamery has been exciting to watch, said Tom Bradley, the Medford commercial real estate broker who first suggested the deal with the Vellas. "It was a good fit," said Bradley, 41, who admitted he has tried to sneak himself to the top of the local list of Rogue River Blue fans. When he gets a wedge, Bradley likes to toss it in on salads, serve it with crudities or crumble it over a pan of oven-roasted red potatoes rolled in olive oil, kosher salt and fresh rosemary. Several seconds under the broiler to melt the cheese is the finishing touch. Such a dish makes plain why the demand for Rogue Creamery cheese has grown so intense. "It’s fundamentally good, it’s local, and all of a sudden I’ve got a very highly publicized, gourmet item I can share with friends," he said. For more information about the Rogue Creamery, call 665-1155 or visit www.RogueGoldCheese.com Reach reporter JoNel Aleccia at 776-4465, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? 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