Beer and cheese just go together. So when we were approached by our friends at Firestone Walker Brewing Company for a collaboration for their upcoming Brewmaster's Collective beer club shipment, we were easily convinced.
The brewery told us more about the Farmstead Collection which would showcase three barrel-aged beers in collaboration with WhistlePig. One of beers used to create two of the collection beers was Firestone's beloved barrel-aged Central Coast quad, Stickee Monkee. We decided to use a few growlers of Stickee Monkee to make an aged cheese for Firestone's club shipment.
When brainstorming ideas for the cheese, our creamery team decided to go with a similar base cheese as our year-round offering, Paso Vino. Instead of soaking the cow's milk, Spanish-style cheese, we used a few growlers of the barrel-aged beer. After soaking, the cheese wheels were placed in our aging room for six months - Introducing, Stickee Cow.
Although made in a similar way as Paso Vino, Stickee Cow has a sharper and slight pleasant bitterness due to the hop alpha acids from the beer soak. You might also get subtle hints of hop oils from the concentrated cheese.
“This was a really fun collaboration,” said Jack Rudolph, Stepladder Creamery owner. “We love a good challenge, and it helps that our Head Cheesemaker and Director of Operations both have a background in the beer industry. Our team had a lot of fun getting creative with the cheese and we're very happy with the end result. It’s creamy, delicious and different from our other year-round offerings. Enjoy!”
Stickee Cow is only available in the Farmstead Collection for Brewmaster's Collective beer club members and our Cheese Club members. Join our Cheese Club today to buy a wedge of this one-of-a-kind cheese!
