One of the lovely parts of visiting Watkins Glen, New York – is the variety of experiences that can be had there! My daughter was most looking forward to a Farm Tour, and Cheese Tasting at Sunset View Creamery. She’d heard there was a pretty good possibility that she would get to see beautiful Holstein Cows up close, and she was ready to make their acquaintance!
Our family is also a pretty big consumer of dairy products, and I thought it would be great for her to see up close how quality cheese and dairy products are actually made. Rather than believing they just show up on shelves in the grocery store!
Sunset View Creamery is located on Hoffman’s Dairy, a century old farm located outside of Odessa, New York, 15 minutes South of Watkins Glen. This Farmstead & Artisan Cheese Production Facility is operated, along with the farm by the 4th and 5th generation of the Hoffman Family! And from the moment we stepped out of our car, we could feel that family atmosphere. In fact, on our tour all the houses that we could see in the distance, belonged to various members of the Hoffman Family and their children.
A Farm operation of this scope takes all hands on deck! And this family lives and breathes their mission. The passion they have for farming and artisan cheese making is truly palpable!
The Farm is set up so that you can drive up, and follow numbered signs – taking you on a self guided tour of the journey the cheese takes in production. You start at the baby cows, and get to see where they live as they grow and what they eat. After milking, you can see where the cheese production facility is, and then step inside their store!
Once inside the store you are treated to various samples, that are rotated on a daily basis. We found everyone at the farm extremely friendly, and more than willing to answer any questions that we had. The Hoffmans are also willing to explain to you why different kinds of cheese take different amounts of time, or effort to produce. It was really quite fascinating, and we all learned quite a bit.
We loved getting to taste the product who’s path to market we had just traced around The Hoffman farm, on our tour!
While you can purchase products directly from the farm store online, it really is more fun to actually go into the store they have on their farm. You really get the feeling that each product has been made with love and care!
Sunset View Creamery currently produces Cheddar type cheese, Monterrey Jack, Mozzarella and a cheese they call Heritage which is a combination of Parmesan and Swiss. They are also preparing to offer a new Cheese called “BelPaese.” So the type of Artisan cheese you can buy and taste here, really is quite varied. All the milk that is used to make their cheeses comes only from their own Holstein herd!
Besides Cheese, the retail shop carries many other MADE IN NY Products including, Homemade Crackers, Honey, Maple Syrup, Fudge, Coffee and more!
In short, Sunset View Creamery is worth the small trip off the beaten path. It’s a chance to really connect with some of the men and women that feed our country. Seeing this family enterprise was really inspiring, and made me proud to be an American. Hard work and an entrepreneurial mind has kept the Hoffman Farm moving and growing through the generations! I look forward to seeing where the farm goes in future generations.
If you enjoy artisan cheeses and a slice of Americana – add this farm to your list!
What: Sunset View Creamery
Where:4970 County Road 14
Odessa, NY 14869
For More Info: www.sunsetviewcreamery.com
Many thanks to The Hoffman Family for the tour! We really enjoyed it. All opinions are my own.
About Shannon SchmidShannon traded in her sensible NYC TV producer shoes (they were best for taking the subway), for a pair of Texas Cowboy boots when she married her best friend! He's at fault for making this Yankee a Texan! Shannon writes about all things that make a house a home. Her chief blogging inspiration is being the proud & slightly neurotic mom of a preschool age daughter.
You can find Shannon on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and her new favorite place to hang out, Google+.
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