Cheese in Wisconsin

The Cheese Regions

Green County and the South-West

Swiss immigrants made Green County the home of American Swiss cheese, and Monroe is still its center. Watch Roth cheese being made from the viewing hall at Alp and Dell, see a restored one-kettle factory at the National Historic Cheesemaking Center, and come in an even-numbered September for Green County Cheese Days. Small factory outlets dot the back roads to Brodhead, Darlington and Mineral Point.

Madison, the Dells and the Wisconsin River

Madison has the best cheese counters: Fromagination on the Capitol Square and the Wisconsin Cheese Mart on State Street. It also holds the Beer and Cheese Fest in January and Curd Fest in August. West along the Wisconsin River, Arena Cheese (home of Colby Jack) has a viewing area and Cedar Grove in Plain gives tours by appointment. Carr Valley has factory shops in La Valle, Mauston and Fennimore and a store in Wisconsin Dells.

The Fox Valley, Lakeshore and Door County

This is the busiest cheese country in the state. Union Star gives free 8am tours, LaClare makes goat cheese behind glass, and Henning's has a museum of old equipment beside its viewing windows. Plymouth, which calls itself the Cheese Capital of the World, has the Cheese Counter and Dairy Heritage Center. Up in Door County, Renard's near Sturgeon Bay is the main cheese stop.

Milwaukee and the South-East

Coming from Chicago, the first stop is Mars Cheese Castle on I-94 in Kenosha. In Milwaukee, the Hill Valley Dairy cheese bar sits beside its production room, and the Wisconsin Cheese Mart has been selling cheese in the city for more than 85 years. Widmer's in Theresa is an hour north-west.

Western and Northern Wisconsin

Ellsworth is the Cheese Curd Capital, where the Ellsworth Creamery store gets its fresh curds at 11am; the cooperative's Menomonie plant has self-guided viewing windows. Bass Lake in Somerset is 40 minutes from St. Paul. Further north, Burnett Dairy runs a cheese store and bistro near Grantsburg.

When to Go

Factories make cheese on weekday mornings, so plan visits for Monday to Friday before 11am. Most factory shops open all year. Festival season runs from June to September: CheeseFest in Little Chute on the first weekend of June, the Ellsworth Cheese Curd Festival on the last weekend of June, Curd Fest in Madison in mid-August, and Cheese Days in Monroe on the third weekend of September in even years. The Monroe museum and LaClare's outdoor goat areas are summer things; the museum opens May to October.

A Four-Day Route

Day 1: drive up I-94 from Chicago with a stop at Mars Cheese Castle, then spend the afternoon at Milwaukee's cheese shops. Day 2: Widmer's in Theresa for the 7am make, LaClare for lunch, and Henning's and Plymouth in the afternoon. Day 3: Union Star's 8am tour, then west to Madison for Fromagination. Day 4: south to Monroe for the Emmi Roth viewing hall and the cheese museum, or west to Arena and Cedar Grove.

Getting Around

You need a car. Almost every factory is out in farm country, and they open early. Milwaukee and Madison are the bases with the most hotels and the best cheese shops; Green Bay, Appleton and Fond du Lac work for the eastern factories.

More Places to Buy Cheese

The factory tours roundup compares the places with viewing windows. These smaller factory shops and tasting rooms are also open to visitors:

Hours change with the seasons and holidays, so check before a long drive.