We truly believe that you can really taste the difference in the products we make and sell and invite you to come on down and see for yourself.  As always, we encourage you to taste anything you see that perks your interest and if you aren’t completely satisfied with your purchase, we will do what ever it takes to make you happy.

Things We Like to Eat

Here are just a few things in the Cheese Shop that we all are loving.

Bacon

We have much-love for bacon at the Creamery, so we dedicated enough space in our little case for 3 kinds from all around the Midwest.  There’s applewood-smoked Nueske’s from Wisconsin, hickory-smoke Benton’s from Tennessee, and peppercorn-crusted Ozark Trails from Texas.  They all have their own character, are thick-cut and full of flavor.

Martelli Pastas

The Martelli family makes these fantastic pastas in the tiny Tuscan town of Lari.  They insist on using only the hardest durum wheat flour and extrude their pasta through a traditional bronze die, allowing it to firmly grip the sauce.  The Martellis give their pastas plenty of time to dry thoroughly and this is one of the most important steps.  The slow dry makes the texture nice and chewy and the flavor more intense.  These pastas are not a mere vehicle for the sauce, but have wonderful flavor even by themselves.

Available in 1.1 lb. bags of i Maccheroni and gli Spaghetti for $10.99 each.

The Creamery’s Pimento Cheese

Okay, this isn’t a new one.  But, this rich and savory Southern tradition has laid some pretty deep roots in Ann Arbor over the past few years.  Made with 2-year raw milk cheddar, sweet roasted Spanish red peppers, cayenne, sea salt, and Telicherry peppercorns, pimento cheese is becoming quite the cult phenomena around town.  This is one of the few things you can find across several Zingerman’s businesses and rarer stll, each one of us makes it ourselves.  The recipes are simil

ar but each of us puts our own little spin on it.   Which is the best?  Only you can be the judge and nothing sounds better to me than going on a pimento cheese tour of the ZCoB.  Just be sure to arm yourself with enough Bakehouse soft pretzels to get you through the day…

The Ypsi

While this one hasn’t technically just arrived, the last several batches are probably the best we’ve ever tasted.  Everything seems to have come together thanks to a few tweaks made by our diligent cheesemakers.  The Ypsi is our take on the traditional French crottin.  They have a wonderfully creamy texture when young which develops into a firm, fudgey paste with a few weeks of age.  Definitely give this one a taste the next time you are in the cheese shop.

If interested, call the Creamery at (734) 929-0500 and we’ll get you all signed up!

Mozzarella Classes – Saturdays 12 – 2:30 pm – $50/person

September through May

August Cheese of the Month – Sharon Hollow

Made from fresh local cow’s milk, there is no cheese quite like the Sharon Hollow being made anywhere else in the country.  The production technique is simple and traditional, a little rennet is added to the newly-arrived milk from Calder Dairy to set up the curd.  Once set, we hand-cut and ladle the curds into small round forms, interlacing scoops with fresh garlic and cracked Telicherry peppercorns, or garlic and chives, and allow them to drain.

Come on into the Cheese Shop on a Wednesday afternoon and you can treat yourself to a Sharon Hollow fresh out of the mold.  They are pleasantly tangy with a fresh, milky flavor perfectly accentuated by the herbs.  Try them stuffed into pasta shells and baked in homemade sauce, crumbled onto scrambled eggs or in an omelet, folded into mashed potatoes, crumbled on some Syaracuse salt potatoes, or simply on a toasted bagel.

All month long, get either flavor of Sharon Hollow for only $4.99!

Coming up in September, top honors are going to our first product, Real Cream Cheese!

Great Lakes Cheshire is Back

After a bit of a hiatus, our one-an-only raw cow’s milk cheese has made a triumphant return to our cheese counter.  These babies are just of legal age, nice and mild and easily accessible with enough character to please a hardened cheese afficianado.

Supplies are just a little bit limited as we wait for several more to reach the proper age, but I’m pretty sure if you are a fan of our first hard cheese, we’ll be able to help you out.  Only available at the Creamery right now, soon to be found everywhere!  $26.99/lb.

September 19th:  A Taste of Michigan!

Celebrate the bounty of Michigan-made and Michigan-grown foods with us on September 19th at 4pm.  There’s a small but burgeoning cheese-scene here in the Third Coast and this is your chance to taste what the state has to offer!  Michigan Cheese Makers Cooperative President, and gelato-whiz, Josh Miner will join us to discuss his role at the Coop and delve more deeply into the types of cheeses being produced in Michigan and the folks who make them.  And, of course, what’s great local cheese without some fine local fruits and other goodies to pair with them?  We will have a cornucopia of flavors from the Ann Arbor Farmers Market and and more to pair with some home-grown cheeses.

Reserve your spot: 734-929-0500
Sunday, September 19th, at 4pm.  $25 per person.

Coming next month – Apples & Cheese!

Farmer’s Market Season

There are few things more enjoyable than an early morning stroll through a bustling farmers market.  As markets become more and more prevalent around the country, we are reminded just how luck we have been to have so many great ones in Southeastern Michigan for so long.  From the beginning of the Creamery, farmers markets have been a huge part of what we do.  Well, tis the season for farmers markets, for sure, and you can find the Creamery or our cheeses at several around the area.

At our market stand, you will find a resplendent selection of our cheeses – Fresh and Smoked Mozzarella (with the occasional Burrata or Mozz & Myrtle, City Goats so fresh you could slap ‘em, cow’s milk Sharon Hollows, and a rotating offering of our soft-ripened cheeses.

Find us at:
- Ann Arbor Downtown Farmers’ Market (Kerrytown) – Saturdays in April through December, Wednesdays in May through      September
- Ann Arbor Westside Farmers’ Market (Jackson and Maple Rds.) – Thursdays in June through September
- Eastern Market in Detroit – Saturdays in April through December
- And you can find our cheese being sold at the Downtown Ypsilanti Market on Tuesdays and the Canton Farmers Market on Sundays!

The Word on Cheese…

The most recent issue of Culture Magazine has a wonderful piece about us that we just had to mention. Written by our friend Matt Rubiner of Rubiner’s Cheesemongors & Grocers in Great Barrington, MA, and entitled Not Business as Usual, the article delves into the unique opportunities creating cheese in the middle of an industrial park on the south side of Ann Arbor present. Surely not the first site or building anyone would probably choose to start up a cheesemaking business, our unique situation has afforded us the necessity to adapt to our environment in some pretty clever ways, both as producers and retailers. And we really wouldn’t have it any other way.

Matt is a great writer and his voice really shines through in this piece. There are some great photos of Cheshire-making and drool-worthy shots of cheese that can really get that cheese itch itchy. Hope you enjoy!

Welcome to Zingerman’s Creamery’s Cheese Shop, the only place in town that you can get hand-made cheeses and gelato mere feet from where they were born.  We are proud to offer not only our own products but also great cheeses, dry goods, and charcuterie from our favorite producers around the world.

We truly believe that you can really taste the difference in the products we make and sell and invite you to come on down and see for yourself.  As always, we encourage you to taste anything you see that perks your interest and if you aren’t completely satisfied with your purchase, we will do what ever it takes to make you happy.

Just Arrived!

Here’s just a few items that have just arrived in the Cheese Shop.

Gelato Sandwiches

Forget the spoon for this one.  Quantities may be limited but the flavor certainly is not!  Made with small-batch, real vanilla gelato sandwiched between the chocolate cookies found in the Bakehouse’s Over-the-Moon Pies.  A match made in heaven!

Martelli Pastas

The Martelli family makes these fantastic pastas in the tiny Tuscan town of Lari.  They insist on using only the hardest durum wheat flour and extrude their pasta through a traditional bronze die, allowing it to firmly grip the sauce.  The Martellis give their pastas plenty of time to dry thoroughly and this is one of the most important steps.  The slow dry makes the texture nice and chewy and the flavor more intense.  These pastas are not a mere vehicle for the sauce, but have wonderful flavor even by themselves.

Available in 1.1 lb. bags of i Maccheroni and gli Spaghetti for $10.99 each.

Queso de Vare

A Spanish goats milk cheese that hails from Asturias, a rugged and mountainous region perfectly suited to goats.  This little gem has swiftly become a staff favorite and one of our quickest-selling cheeses.  It has a very clean flavor that is subtle yet full.  Great with a glass of white wine and amazing with a hunk of mountain bread.  These little 1 pound wheels of goodness are giving Garrotxa a run for its money.

The Creamery’s Pimento Cheese

Okay, this isn’t a new one.  But, this rich and savory Southern tradition has laid some pretty deep roots in Ann Arbor over the past few years.  Made with 2-year raw milk cheddar, sweet roasted Spanish red peppers, cayenne, sea salt, and Telicherry peppercorns, pimento cheese is becoming quite the cult phenomena around town.  This is one of the few things you can find across several Zingerman’s businesses and rarer stll, each one of us makes it ourselves.  The recipes are similar but each of us puts our own little spin on it.   Which is the best?  Only you can be the judge and nothing sounds better to me than going on a pimento cheese tour of the ZCoB.  Just be sure to arm yourself with enough Bakehouse soft pretzels to get you through the day…

Luciano’s Lemon Gelato

One of our best selling seasonal flavors and definitely a staff favorite around the Creamery, Luciano’s Lemon is back in the case for the summer.  Made with gobs of luscious Bakehouse lemon curd folded into fresh gelato, this flavor is crisp and refreshing with just enough tartness to balance the sweet.

You can grab some by the scoop when it’s in the case or by the 12 oz. drum.  A perfect match for a thick slice of blueberry pie…

The Ypsi

While this one hasn’t technically just arrived, the last several batches are probably the best we’ve ever tasted.  Everything seems to have come together thanks to a few tweaks made by our diligent cheesemakers.  The Ypsi is our take on the traditional French crottin.  They have a wonderfully creamy texture when young which develops into a firm, fudgey paste with a few weeks of age.  Definitely give this one a taste the next time you are in the cheese shop.

As the hordes of artists and art lovers descend upon downtown Ann Arbor, there are few commodities more valuable than parking.  Especially free parking.   And we’ve got plenty of it over at Zingerman’s Southside.

Just a scone’s throw away from I-94, you’ll find plenty of parking to go with handmade cheeses and gelato, artisan breads, pastries, and candy bars, and small-batch freshly roasted coffees.  Zingerman’s Southside is where it’s at this week and every week.  If avoiding the throngs at all costs is your thing, then we’ve got you covered.

And for those of you who love the hustle and bustle of large crowds and a symphony for the senses (which is me I must admit), we’ve got your good food needs covered as well.  Nestled within downtown Ann Arbor, you’ll find several oasis’s of Zingerman’s gastronomical delights.

There’s the Delicatessen of course, bastion of delightful sandwiches, olive oils, vinegars, cheeses, and Zingerman’s-made goodies.  And speaking of Zingerman’s-made foods, you’ll find the Creamery at the Kerrytown Farmers Market on Wednesday and Saturday and…

It’s Edible Art Fair time again!  Join the Creamery in front of the Michigan Theatre to cool off with some of our handmade gelato in a few different ways.  We’ll be set up just a jump away from the corner of State & Liberty vending scoops of our favorite frozen Italian dessert, gelato sandwiches made with the Bakehouse’s mouth-watering cookies, and gelato & Zingerman’s cold-brew coffee floats.  The full menu is on the left!

We’ll be there all week long, from the Art Fair’s opening at 10am on Wednesday and closing it down at 6 on Saturday.  We hope to see you there!

Farmers Market Season!

‘Tis the season for Farmers Markets and you can find Zingerman’s Creamery cheeses at several great ones around Southeast Michigan. It’s hard to beat a beautiful summer’s day spent wading through bountiful tables of produce, honeys, meats, and, cheese! So far it has been a great season and we are eagerly anticipating the bounty yet to come.

From us, you will find a great selection of our cheeses – fresh and smoked mozzarella, City Goats so fresh you could slap ‘em, cows milk Sharon Hollows, and a rotating offering of our soft-ripened cheeses.

Find us at:

Ann Arbor Downtown Farmers’ Market (Kerrytown) – Saturdays in April through December, Wednesdays in May through September

Ann Arbor Westside Farmers’ Market (Jackson and Maple Rds.) – Thursdays in June through September

Eastern Market in Detroit – Saturdays in April through December

And you can find our cheese at the Downtown Ypsilanti Market on Tuesdays and the Canton Farmers Market on Sundays!

July Cheese of the Month – Fresh Goat Cheese!

The calendar has turned so that must mean a new Creamery cheese is taking top honors, and this month the spotlight is shining on our Fresh Goat Cheese. This is one of the purest expressions of the fabulous goat’s milk we get in every week from the MacDonald family. This cheese has a wonderfully light and fluffy texture with a cool creamy flavor. Made from pasteurized milk and traditional rennet, we have a new batch waiting for you every Friday at the Cheese Shop. Spread it on toasted bagels or caraway rye, serve it with celery sticks, use it to stuff Piquillo peppers, mix with honey and eat by the spoonful. It’s ideal for stuffing pasta with, or as a topping for already sauced pasta. Bake it into a goat cheese and tomato tart. Any way you eat it, enjoy!

All month long, get yourself a pound for $3-off the regular price! Only $10.99 for a full or $5.50 for a 1/2-pound tub!

The Word on Cheese…

The most recent issue of Culture Magazine has a wonderfully wordsmithed piece about us that we just had to mention. Written by our friend Matt Rubiner of Rubiner’s Cheesemongors & Grocers in Great Barrington, MA, and entitled Not Business as Usual, the article delves into the unique opportunities creating cheese in the middle of an industrial park on the south side of Ann Arbor present. Surely not the first site or building anyone would probably choose to start up a cheesemaking business, our unique situation has afforded us the necessity to adapt to our environment in some pretty clever ways, both as producers and retailers. And we really wouldn’t have it any other way.

Matt is a great writer and his voice really shines through in this piece. There are some great photos of Cheshire-making and drool-worthy shots of cheese that can really get that cheese itch itchy. Hope you enjoy!

From us, you will find a great selection of our cheeses – fresh and smoked mozzarella, City Goats so fresh you could slap ‘em, cows milk Sharon Hollows, and a rotating offering of our soft-ripened cheeses.

Find us at:

Ann Arbor Downtown Farmers’ Market (Kerrytown) – Saturdays in April through December, Wednesdays in May through September

Ann Arbor Westside Farmers’ Market (Jackson and Maple Rds.) – Thursdays in June through September

Eastern Market in Detroit – Saturdays in April through December

And you can find our cheese at the Downtown Ypsilanti Market on Tuesdays and the Canton Farmers Market on Sundays!

July Cheese of the Month – Fresh Goat Cheese!

The calendar has turned so that must mean a new Creamery cheese is taking top honors, and this month the spotlight is shining on our Fresh Goat Cheese. This is one of the purest expressions of the fabulous goat’s milk we get in every week from the MacDonald family. This cheese has a wonderfully light and fluffy texture with a cool creamy flavor. Made from pasteurized milk and traditional rennet, we have a new batch waiting for you every Friday at the Cheese Shop. Spread it on toasted bagels or caraway rye, serve it with celery sticks, use it to stuff Piquillo peppers, mix with honey and eat by the spoonful. It’s ideal for stuffing pasta with, or as a topping for already sauced pasta. Bake it into a goat cheese and tomato tart. Any way you eat it, enjoy!

All month long, get yourself a pound for $3-off the regular price! Only $10.99 for a full or $5.50 for a 1/2-pound tub!

Proud to be an American Cheese!

Join us at Zingerman’s Southside for a late-afternoon of cheese tasting, focused on the lactic lovelies of the good ol’ USA. Not too long ago, US cheese was merely a blip on the map but the past decade or 2 has seen a veritable explosion of amazing cheeses here in the States. We will take you on a journey through the history of American cheeses, from its humble roots to the world-class goat, cow, and sheep’s milk cheeses you can find in specialty shops all around the country.

The tasting begins at 4pm on Sunday, July 18th and will be held in the teaching kitchen at Bake!, right next door to the Creamery. Registration is $25. You can call us at 734.929.0500 to reserve a spot!

The Word on Cheese…

The most recent issue of Culture Magazine has a wonderfully wordsmithed piece about us that we just had to mention. Written by our friend Matt Rubiner of Rubiner’s Cheesemongors & Grocers in Great Barrington, MA, and entitled Not Business as Usual, the article delves into the unique opportunities creating cheese in the middle of an industrial park on the south side of Ann Arbor present. Surely not the first site or building anyone would probably choose to start up a cheesemaking business, our unique situation has afforded us the necessity to adapt to our environment in some pretty clever ways, both as producers and retailers. And we really wouldn’t have it any other way.

Matt is a great writer and his voice really shines through in this piece. There are some great photos of Cheshire-making and drool-worthy shots of cheese that can really get that cheese itch itchy. Hope you enjoy!

Camp Bacon is a long weekend of bacon events at Zingerman’s Southside in Ann Arbor, MI on June 17-20, 2010.

This weekend brings the biggest event to hit the Southside yet, Zingerman’s Camp Bacon.  A celebration of all things bacon, starting Friday night when legendary R&B man Andre Williams threatens to tear the Roadhouse down with a live performance for the ages.  Fresh off of a European tour, Williams is stopping in town just long enough to throw down at the corner of Jackson and Maple, so don’t miss this opportunity to pair great American food with great American music.  And if you didn’t know, Andre Williams has a brand new album and a book.

Saturday brings Camp Bacon’s Main Event.  We’re bringing some of the biggest names in the bacon business to Ann Arbor to dive into our favorite subject.  Highlights of the Main Event include:

• Bacon tasting with Zingerman’s co-founder Ari Weinzweig
• Hands-on pancetta-making class with Herb Eckhouse
  from La Quercia in Iowa
• Bacon cooking demo with James Beard Award-winning cookbook author and chef Molly Stevens
• My life as a Bacon curer with Allan Benton from East Tennessee
  and Nick Spencer from Chicago
• A Reading from Sarah Katherine Lewis, author of Sex and Bacon: Why I Love Things that are Very, Very Bad for Me
• How Bacon Changed My Life: Presentations from curers and bacon professionals around the country
• Plus breakfast and lunch from Zingerman’s, a free copy of Ari’s Zingerman’s Guide to Better Bacon, a free t-shirt and more!

That’s just the first half of the day.  When 3 o’clock hits, the Camp Bacon becomes a street fair that includes tastes ofbacon from some of America’s best—Nueske’s, Benton’s, La Quercia, Ozark Mountain Trails and more.  We’ll be set up farmer’s market-style with some Creamery cheese paired with bacon, Maple Bacon Gelato and other goodies.  There’s no charge but participants are encouraged to make a $5 donation for the Washtenaw County 4-H program.

After it’s grand debut at the Gelato Kickoff, Maple Bacon Gelato will return for the bacon festivities.  Nueske’s applewood-smoked bacon is caramelized and spiced with pepper and a touch of heat before being folded into rich Maple gelato.  We do have some in the case now so if you didn’t get a chance to taste it over the weekend, be sure to give it a try when you are in.

June Cheese of the Month  -  Lincoln Log

This style of aged goat cheese was one of the first to catch on here in the States.  And while it is an aged, mold-ripened cheese, the fact that boucherons imported from France would often be several weeks, if not maybe months, old by the time they graced the case of the Deli and other cheese shops was practicaly a travesty.  So few knew what this type of cheese was truly supposed to be!

With that in mind, not too long after the Creamery began, John decided to tackle boucheron and add it to our repertoire and it has been one of our most popular cheeses since.   This dense, log-shaped cheese is about four inches in diameter and is covered with a thin, white mold. It has a very rich texture with hints of citrus, a mild goat flavor and a touch of mushroom finish.

All June long, enjoy some Lincoln Log for $2-off a pound!

Cheese Tasting:  The Beauty of the Bovine

Jersey and brown swiss and holsteins oh my! Dairy cowa provide th emilk for the majority of the world’s cheese, and this tasting is dedicated to their fine work! Learn why so much cheese is made from cow’s milk, he properties of this milk, and the different kinds of cow’s that produce it. Come ready to try some of our very favorites!

Sunday, June 20th *4-6 pm* $25* Call: 734-929-0500 for reservations

Are you an avid Facebooker?   Check out our Event for the Tasting!

But we need your help!

When we develop a new flavor, it goes through quite an extensive process before it actually hits our case.   And this year we are throwing caution to the wind and need the help of your palate.  When you come up with a flavor like Hazelnut, or Lemon, or Mint Chip, you kind of have a context and idea of what it might be like.  Something like Bacon gelato though, is a bit of a wild card.  That being said, we thought this was the perfect opportunity to flip the script and have you all become official gelato taste-testers.  So please let us know what you think!

• Come on by the Cheese Shop anytime between 11am – 4pm for a free scoop of gelato.
• 
  
• Meet our gelato-maker, Josh, and learn the intricacies of gelato-making at either of 2 free demonstrations at Noon or 2pm.
• 
  
• And if our Maple Bacon Gelato has really wet your appetite for all-things cured and porcine, be sure to check us out again on June 19th for Camp Bacon at Zingerman’s Creamery.  Full details available at the Camp Bacon website.
• 
  

June Cheese of the Month  -  Lincoln Log

Ann Arbor’s very own boucheron.  Who says you need to travel to France to get a taste of the L’or Valley?  In fact, it was for that very reason that the Lincoln Log was born!  This style of aged goat cheese was one of the first to catch on here in the States.  And while it is an aged, or even more appropriately, a mold-ripened cheese, the fact that boucherons imported from France would often be several weeks, if not maybe months, old by the time they graced the case of the Deli and other cheese shops was practicaly a travesty.  So few knew what this type of cheese was truly supposed to be!

With that in mind, not too long after the Creamery began, John decided to tackle boucheron and add it to our repertoire and it has been one of our most popular cheeses since.  All June long, enjoy some Lincoln Log for $2-off a pound!

Cheese Tasting:  The Beauty of the Bovine

Jersey and brown swiss and holsteins oh my! Dairy cowa provide th emilk for the majority of the world’s cheese, and this tasting is dedicated to their fine work! Learn why so much cheese is made from cow’s milk, he properties of this milk, and the different kinds of cow’s that produce it. Come ready to try some of our very favorites!

Sunday, June 20^th *4-6 pm* $25* Call: 734-929-0500 for reservations

Are you an avid Facebooker?   Check out our Event for the Tasting!

Named for the brick-paved streets in Ann Arbor where Zingerman’s Delicatessen is nestled at the corner of E. Kingsley and Detroit St., the Brick is a boucheron-inspired, green peppercorn-studded goat cheese with a dense, lemony paste and a snow white mold rind.   Twice an ACS award winner, the Detroit Street Brick has become one of our favorites at the Creamery and is one of our most widely-available cheeses in Michigan and all around the U.S.

We have been lucky to work closely with local goat farmer Todd MacDonald whose tireless efforts have continually raised the bar of quality in the milk we receive each week.  This is some of the best milk we have ever received and it really shows through in the flavor and texture of the cheeses.  I really like swapping out the customary cheddar on a cheeseburger for a nice slice of Brick and letting it melt up just a little bit before condiments and a bun are applied.  It’s great crumbled on salads, sliced on cheese plates, drizzled with olive oil and broiled, stacked on pizza, or just by itself.

All May long, the Detroit St. Brick is $3-off the regular pound price at the Creamery!  Only $22.99/lb.

Learn to Make Fresh Mozzarella!

EVERY Saturday through May you can get your cheese-learning on at the Creamery.  Come be a cheesemaker for a day as this 2-hour class is held right in the production department of the Creamery.  We will teach you how to make your own mozzarella from either fresh milk or finished curd and you will leave with the confidence and courage to make mozzarella in your own kitchen!

Registration is $45 per person and the class is held from 12-2 pm every Saturday.  Space is limited so reservations are required.  Give us a call at 734-929-0500 and we will get you all signed up!

Rinds of all Kinds

In this cheese tasting we will tackle the age old question, “Can I really eat that rind?”  Quite often, the answer is an emphatic yes!  We’ll talk about the various types of rinds, their functions, and the many ways cheesemakers encourage rind growth on their cheeses, and most importantly, we’ll taste ‘em!  Discover how the rind is cheese’s most amazing and often delicious, built-in accompaniment.

Sunday, May 16th  *  4 pm  *  $25 per person  *  Call (734) 929-0500 for reservations