On March 3rd and 4th, 18 cheese-loving DIYers gathered at Cityfolk Farm to learn about Natural Cheesemaking with David Asher. What a wonderful group of participants! There was such enthusiasm – reverence, even – around food and self-sufficiency. David’s teaching was stellar – he not only focused on the very practical steps of natural cheesemaking – he also taught the more intuitive side of cheesemaking, where you go by hand-feel, instinct and rough measurements, as cheesemakers of the past would have done. He dug into some tough topics, including the real costs of natural cheesemaking, and honouring generations past.
Over the weekend-long workshop, our class made vache, mozzarella, ricotta, clabber, kefir, and started a camembert, a few crottins, a tomme and more!
It was truly lovely to share Cityfolk Farm with others and to see participants finding cozy nooks for visiting, the hammock to nap in over lunch, and the land for many walks throughout the weekend.
Some thoughts from workshop participants:
// I loved this workshop. I probably am not going to make cheese soon but I will someday and I love workshops like these to get to know as much as I can for one day. The other participants were all lovely and your home was beautiful and it was nice to meet so many other people who have similar goals. Everything was so good! Great selection of delicious local foods and presented so beautifully. The squash soup!…
// We enjoyed the workshop,and I’m so glad that we both participated even though it meant double the cost. We are so inspired by David, he doesn’t own a house so that he can travel and teach the art of natural cheese making because it’s something he’s passionate about. I can’t wait to milk goats and bring the warm milk to the house and make cheese.
// Amazing!! Loved the local focus and serious effort to providing such good food.
// The food was amazing! I so appreciate the fact dietary needs were taking into consideration. I appreciated the freshness of everything.
// I enjoyed getting to meet other like minded people and learn from their experiences. The course was great but without the book it would have been a bit over whelming, so thank you for making he book available. The hands on really helped solidify the learning.
// David was such a great teacher, he knew everything! He’s got such passion for the cheese and history and cultures and demonstrating and usually you don’t get a presenter who is awesome at every aspect so I really think he did a fantastic job.
