The Story Behind the Cheese
Everona Dairy started because of a Border Collie! In 1992, Pat went to
a Wine and Fiber Festival at Montpelier, Madison's home near us south of Orange, Virginia. A man was demonstrating what
his Border Collie could do. He happened to have two pups for sale and she came home with one of them. Then, of
course, in a little while, Pat needed something for the pup to do and so she got some sheep. Then she needed something
productive for the sheep to do, she thought about milking them. People do milk sheep, don't they? Of course.
She found out that more sheep are milked in the world than cows, and that their milk is very special for cheese-making.
Pat had already taught herself how to make cheese
-she is Renaissance in that she likes to do everything for herself that she can. By 1996, she had gotten Friesian dairy
sheep, taken a cheese course in Wisconsin on the scientific side of cheesemaking and visited Greece. Dell, our foundation
Border Collie had arrived from Wales in 1994 to be our right hand dog.
This year we hope to make about four tons of cheese.
We find the climate here in the Virginia Piedmont is as good for cheese as it is for wine - the terroir, as they say.
We make several types of aged sheep's milk cheese -our signature cheese is Piedmont, followed closely by the Cracked Pepper, and
we will present the others to you.
Everona Dairy Business Philosophy
We are producing award-winning sheep's milk cheese - aged, washed-rind, and unpasteurized.
As simple as it gets. It is exciting to introduce people to the complexities of good cheese. We are trying to
"spread the word" bite by bite. Always looking for ways to improve our products, at Everona we strive to continue
the tradition of artisan cheesemaking techniques while keeping up with the growing demand for local, farmstead cheeses.
Of course, we also believe in educating, and are always happy to answer your questions.
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