Cheese in Vermont

The Cheese Regions

The trail map splits the state into six regions. The Northwest, around Burlington and up to the Canadian border, has Shelburne Farms on Lake Champlain and Boston Post Dairy, a goat and cow farm in Enosburg Falls with a petting area in the warmer months. The Lower Champlain Valley around Middlebury is quieter, with Blue Ledge Farm's self-serve farmstand in Leicester.

The Central Route 100 Corridor runs through Waterbury, Stowe and the Mad River Valley. This is where the Cabot Creamery Store sits on the road to Stowe, alongside the von Trapp Farmstead store in Waitsfield and Sage Farm Goat Dairy in Stowe, which runs guided tours on Saturday mornings.

The Northeast Kingdom is famous for Jasper Hill, but most makers up there are working farms that don't take visitors. The Cabot Yellow Barn in Hardwick and the Willey's Store in Greensboro, which stocks the Jasper Hill range, are the easy stops.

The Southeast has the most to see. Grafton, Crowley, the Plymouth Cheese Factory at the Calvin Coolidge birthplace, Billings Farm and Sugarbush Farm near Woodstock, plus a run of sheep's milk farmstands around Putney. The Southwest is short on visitor stops; Woodlawn Creamery's farm store in Pawlet is the one that is open daily.

When to Go

Late May to mid-October is the season. Shelburne Farms opens for day visits and cheesemaking viewing from May to October, Billings Farm is open daily from 23 May to 31 October, and the Coolidge historic site in Plymouth Notch opened from 22 May to 25 October in 2026. Vermont Cheese Week runs in mid-September and ends with the Vermont Cheesemakers Festival at Shelburne Farms; in 2026 the week ran from 13 to 20 September.

Winter still works for the shops. The Cabot stores, Crowley, Grafton's Proctorsville store and Sugarbush Farm stay open, although Sugarbush asks you to call ahead about road conditions from late November to early April. March and April are sugaring season, when Sugarbush boils maple syrup. Many small farms close their stands from December to April or switch to visits by appointment, and mud season in spring makes some farm roads hard going.

A Two-Day Route

Day one, the south. Start at Grafton Village Cheese's factory window in Grafton between 11am and 1pm, the best viewing time. Drive north to Grafton's Okemo Valley store in Proctorsville (Thursday to Sunday), then on to Crowley Cheese in Mount Holly, open Monday to Saturday. Finish at the Plymouth Cheese Factory in Plymouth Notch, open daily from 11am to 5pm, and spend the night in Woodstock.

Day two, Woodstock and north. Billings Farm opens at 10am and Sugarbush Farm, a short drive from Woodstock and Quechee, at 9am. Then take I-89 north to Waterbury Center for the Cabot Creamery Store (Tuesday to Sunday from 10:30am), and end at Shelburne Farms for the Sun to Cheese Tour at 2pm in season.

Getting Around

You need a car. The farms are on back roads, often dirt, and nothing on the trail is served by public transport. Amtrak's Vermonter stops at Brattleboro, White River Junction and Waterbury, and Burlington has the state's main airport. Unstaffed farmstands often take only cash, so carry some.

Other Cheesemakers You Can Visit

Hours below are from the 2026-2027 trail map. Farms change their hours with the seasons and the farm work, so check before driving out.

Several other makers sell from the farm by appointment only, among them Bridport Creamery, Champlain Valley Creamery in Middlebury, Barn First Creamery in Westfield, Mt. Mansfield Creamery in Morrisville, Big Picture Farm in Townshend and Tucker Hill Cheese in Randolph Center. Jasper Hill Farm, Vermont Creamery and Maplebrook are not open to the public.