No Factory? No Problem.

A new crop of Wisconsin cheesemakers crafting original, seasonal cheeses is bubbling up in America’s Dairyland, bucking the Old World tradition of “one cheesemaker, one cheese, one factory.”

Nomad cheesemaker Willi Lehner has led the trend of crafting seasonal cheese for decades, never owning his own factory yet piling up awards along the way. In spring, summer and fall, he travels between five different cheese plants in the state, crafting such beauties as Bleu Mont Bandaged Cheddar—named runner-up Best in Show at the 2013 American Cheese Society Competition—as well as a line-up of raw-milk cheeses, also carrying the Bleu Mont label.

“I don’t make cheese in the winter; winter is for skiing,” he says. While Lehner is well known for his annual February ski-trip to Jackson Hole, he is also known for traveling the globe in the off-season to glean new cheesemaking skills and ideas. The bandaged Cheddar was inspired by a 2005 trip to the British Isles, while some of his current alpine style creations stem from making cheese two years ago with the venerable Willi Schmid in the Toggenburg region of central Switzerland.

A few of his cheeses, such as Bleu Mont Bandaged Cheddar, are available at select cheese shops and at white-table restaurants from coast to coast, while others—including seasonal cheeses in various phases of experimentation—may only be found at the Bleu Mont stand on Saturdays at the Dane County Farmers’ Market in Madison.

Another nomad cheesemaker frequenting farmers markets is Bill Anderson, of Crème de la Coulee Artisan Cheese. Anderson is working to take Old World inspiration to another level, renting space at established cheese factories to make new, original cheeses.

Similar to Lehner, Anderson uses pasture-fed milk whenever possible, and he believes the seasonal cheesemaking process is simply an extension of the flavors and aromas of Wisconsin pastures. “Those flavors become concentrated in the curd, encapsulating Wisconsin terroir, or the taste of the land,” he says.

Currently, Anderson is perfecting his Saint Jenifer, a semi-soft, washed-rind cheese made in the style of a French Munster, which is very different from what Americans think of as Muenster. In the European tradition, Munster is a member of the Monastery family of cheeses, washed in a complex culture of yeast, bacteria and molds that impart an earthy umami flavor and unique aroma.

Saint Jenifer is cave-ripened for more than three months by Jenifer Brozak at Bear Valley Affinage, west of Spring Green. Anderson sells his cheese at local retail shops and at the West Side Community Farmers’ Market on Saturdays in Madison. He also started a “Cheese of the Month” club, featuring both his own and other local artisan cheeses, all carefully crafted using old-world techniques “but with a unique Wisconsin twist.”

Putting her own twist on Wisconsin original cheeses is Anna Landmark of Landmark Creamery. Similar to Lehner and Anderson, Landmark’s “creamery” is virtual. The self-proclaimed “gypsy cheesemaker” travels to different cheese factories to create a line-up of cow, sheep, water buffalo and mixed-milk cheeses.

A newcomer to the Wisconsin scene (Landmark earned her cheesemaker’s license just this year), she partnered with Anna Thomas Bates to launch their company. The pair is already gaining traction for their American Original, Petit Nuage, a French-style, soft, sheep-milk cheese made weekly from April to September at Clock Shadow Creamery in Milwaukee. The cheese follows the seasonality of sheep’s milk in Wisconsin.

Landmark also hand-crafts Tallgrass from golden-hued, pasture-grazed milk in the heart of Green County. Tallgrass' rind is rubbed with smoked paprika and olive oil and aged six weeks to three months. Then there’s Arista, a new sheep-milk, bloomy-rind cheese, and Samwell, a sheep Cheddar under development.

The Annas, both married with small children, are in no hurry to build their own cheese factory, nor do they plan to raise their own animals. “I would rather support other dairies by buying their milk than being a dairy farmer myself,” Landmark says.

Then there’s Cesar Luis, of Cesar’s Cheese, which has a more permanent home at Sassy Cow Creamery, but is unique in that Luis built and owns his own cheese vat and rents space and buys milk from Sassy Cow owner James Baerwolf to make his New World creations: Queso Oaxaca, Queso Fresco, mozzarella, and a few Old World inspirations, including bandaged Cheddar.

Cesar and his wife, Heydi, are both Wisconsin licensed cheesemakers and are the only duo in Wisconsin who hand-stretches mozzarella to sell as string cheese and fresh mozzarella balls. They makes cheese at Sassy Cow about four days a week, traveling from their home in eastern Wisconsin. The set-up suits the pair, who emigrated from Mexico years ago, because it allows them to make award-winning cheese while avoiding the start-up costs of building their own factory.

Luis holds a variety of awards, including World Champion String Cheesemaker for his Queso Oaxaca, which took a gold medal at the 2014 World Championship Cheese Contest, besting second- and third-generation companies from around the world. He’s also received local titles: his hand-stretched string cheese won first place at the 2014 Wisconsin State Fair. He and Heydi continually experiment with making new cheeses, and their two children have recently began helping make cheese with them.

Cesar’s Cheese is available at retail stores from Minneapolis to Madison to Chicago, and their fresh cheese curds are used by dozens of chefs in the tri-state area to create gourmet deepfried cheese curds.

From seasoned nomads to novice newcomers, the Wisconsin cheesemaking scene continues to evolve and grow. The underlying component that connects every traveling cheesemaker is the gratitude they feel toward the established cheesemaker who welcomes them into their plant, allowing each to rent space and purchase milk to make new American Originals.

“Without the generosity of established cheesemakers, none of these cheeses would be born,” Landmark says. “I think that’s the true hallmark of the future of Wisconsin cheesemaking: sharing knowledge and encouraging the next generation.”