We've teamed up with our friends at Wisconsin Cheese to introduce Wisconsin's vibrant cheesemaking community. From the farmers who tend their cow herds to the cheesemakers who churn out wheel after wheel of award-winning cheese, America's Dairyland has a rich heritage that goes back more than 180 years.

Wisconsin is home to some of the world's finest cheeses, most-awarded cheesemakers, and one of two Master Cheesemaker programs in the world—not to mention an ideal climate for dairying. The cheesemakers in this state are committed to a balance of tradition and innovation in every variety, texture, and flavor of cheese they produce. Whether it's a classic cheddar or an imaginative blue, one thing remains the same: Every cheese produced in this state is uniquely Wisconsin.

Seasonality is the name of the game when it comes to Uplands Cheese, an artisan cheesemaking operation situated on top of Pleasant Ridge in Dodgeville, WI in the state's driftless region (an area that lacks the characteristic glacial deposits from the last ice age). Andy Hatch is one of the cheesemakers responsible for turning the high-quality milk from their 140 cows into their two stunning cheeses: the raw milk, spruce bark-wrapped Rush Creek Reserve made in the fall when the cow's graze on hay and the three-time American Cheese Society Best in Show winner Pleasant Ridge Reserve, a raw milk, Alpine-style cheese that's made using grass-fed milk in the summer months. Andy and the folks at Uplands are committed to highlighting the special terroir the region has to offer.

Located in Plymouth, WI, Sartori is a fourth-generation, family owned artisan cheese company with Master Cheesemaker Pam Hodgson at the helm. Pam grew up on a dairy farm and started her career elsewhere in the dairy world, but it wasn't long before she was drawn to cheesemaking. As one of two women in the country to currently hold a Master Cheesemaker title, she's a huge proponent of mentoring other women in the cheesemaking community, especially since her own mentors—her mother and father—played such an important role in her dairy journey. Pam oversees the production of tried-and-true varieties like their Fontina, Parmesan, and Asiago, as well as Sartori's many cheesy innovations, including the one-of-a-kind Merlot BellaVitano® with its berry notes, creamy paste, and delightfully fruity edible rind.

Sid Cook is a fourth-generation cheesemaker and owner of Carr Valley Cheese in La Valle, WI. He's also a Master Cheesemaker certified in Cheddar, Fontina, Gran Canaria™, and Mixed-Milk Cheese who's known for his top-ranking American originals like Wildfire Blue, a smooth, mild cow's milk blue dotted with peperoncino peppers. With more than 700 national and international awards, Sid remains dedicated to producing the high-quality curds that Carr Valley's been known for since 1902—only now, their lineup includes a whopping 90 cheeses that span far beyond the artisanal aged cheddars of their past.

Chris Roelli's great-grandfather moved from Switzerland to Shullsburg, WI to pursue cheesemaking outside of Europe, and that's where Roelli Cheese Haus has stayed ever since, but they haven't stopped evolving. What was once a commodity cheddar factory is now an artisan cheese production where Master Cheesemaker Chris and his small-but-mighty team continue to build on his family's cheesemaking heritage—and don't worry, there's still plenty of cheddar to be had. The Penicillium roqueforti-spiked English-style cheddar, Dunbarton Blue, is the cheese Chris says put him on the map, followed by another award-winning cheddar-blue hybrid called Red Rock that's made with cow's milk, colored with annatto, and cave-aged to maturity.

Words by Madison Trapkin