Widmer's Cheese Cellars

About

In Wisconsin, the cheese making legacy runs deep and examples of third-and fourth generation Wisconsin cheese makers carrying on the family tradition are common. Joe Widmer, of Widmer’s Cheese Cellars in tiny Theresa, Wisconsin, is one such third-generation example. Born into the craft and raised with his six siblings in quarters above the cheese plant, Widmer has succeeded in building the business with a combination of strict adherence to tradition and savvy marketing.   Widmer’s best known for producing Brick cheese and traditional stirred-curd Colby, both Wisconsin original created in small towns nearby. More recently, Widmer has gained fame for his four-year cheddar, a 2002 ACS winner and, according to Joe, a specialty that’s fast become a signature product, changing demographics, in a part, are credited with the tipping of the scales in term of sales and production from brick to cheddar.