Elk Creamery Organic Gourmet Goat Cheese

	Goat Girls and Great Cheese!
View of Elk & the magnificent Pacific Ocean from the road to the dairy. © 2004 Alexandra Pierangeli Goat girls grazing on lush spring greens. © 2005 Alexandra Pierangeli	Now that California is the number one dairy state in America, dairies are popping up around every corner. People are milking cows, goats, sheep and who knows what else. Elk Creamery, though, is the first and presently the only certified organic goat dairy in the state. We're situated on a coastal knoll of Mendocino County, in Northern California, above the beautiful Pacific Ocean, overlooking the village of Elk (left). This season, we are milking around 260 goats from a mixed herd of Saanens, Boers, Oberhaslis, Nubians and La Manchas, as well as a handful of Nigerian Dwarfs, prized for the richness of their milk. Our unique location, on the boundary of the fog belt, provides a comfortable environment and rich forage for the goats (lower left). We've been making artisanal, farmstead* cheese commercially in this glorious setting for a little over three years, starting with delicious fresh chèvre and various herbed chèvres and then mold-ripened cheeses. We also make feta and a limited quantity of aged cheeses for our farmers' market customers; and we are always experimenting with new and distinctive cheeses for wider distribution. Elk Creamery certified organic, gourmet goat cheese used to be a local secret. No longer. Our popularity among cheese aficionados is growing steadily as word spreads outside our home county. It's available now from various, upscale northern & central California delis and specialist cheese shops, as well as northern California Whole Foods. In addition, our cheese is now available in limited quantity in the LA area and in the Eastern Metroplex. * In small batches made by hand. ** With only milk from our farm.
Flattie and the cheese. (Flattie just wouldn't get out of the frame & she was smiling so pretty, I just left her there.) © 2006 Alexandra Pierangeli Cheese in the ageing room. © 2006 Alexandra Pierangeli For more information on Elk Creamery cheeses, you can contact: Alex Pierangeli Office Wrangler Elk Creamery PO Box 89 Elk, CA 95432 (707) 877-1719 admin at elkcreamery dot com* or Ryan Rich Four Elements Organics (805) 674-4272 ryan at fourelementsorganics dot com* * Email addresses written out to foil the nefarious activities of spambots. .Stores & restaurants offering our cheese	Some of our cheeses Camembert de Chèvre A delicious, mold-ripened cheese descending from a long & ancient tradition. Black Gold Another mold-ripened cheese, coated in ash before ageing. Red Gold Second in the series, coated in organic chilies before ageing. *Classic Chèvre* Possibly the creamiest, freshest tasting cheese you've ever eaten Smoked Chèvre Made with real smoke from organic alderwood and applewood on the farm. Smoked Peppery Chèvre Ground organic pepper is added to the curd of this rich, exciting cheese. Feta People tell us this is the best feta they've ever eaten, creamy & flavorful. Marinated Chèvre Handmade balls of fresh chèvre sitting in certified organic extra virgin olive oil with organic peppercorns and fresh basil and garlic from our Biodynamic™ farm.
*CALIFORNIA* AME, San Francisco ARTISAN CHEESE GALLERY, Hollywood AUNTIE EM'S KITCHEN, L.A. BAR BAMBINO, San Francisco BERKELEY BOWL, Berkeley BLACKHAWK GRILL, Danville BRYAN’S QUALITY MEATS, San Francisco BRIAR PATCH, Grass Valley CAL MART SUPER CARNEROS INN, Napa C’EST CHEESE, Santa Barbara CETRELLA, Half Moon Bay CHEESE BOARD COLLECTIVE, Berkeley CHEESE PLUS, San Francisco CORNUCOPIA COMMUNITY MARKET COUNTRY CHEESE COFFEE MARKET, Berkeley COWGIRL CREAMERY, Point Reyes COWGIRL CREAMERY, Ferry Plaza CYRUS RESTAURANT, Healdsburg DELUXE FOODS OF APTOS, Aptos DIABLO FOODS DIAMOND ORGANICS, Moss Landing DI RAMANDO’S CHEESE SHOP, Paso Robles DRAEGER’S, EARTHBOUND FARM, Carmel FARMSTEAD CHEESE, Alameda FOREIGN CINEMA, San Francisco GOOD LIFE GROCERY, Potrero Hlll HALF MOON BAY WINE AND CHEESE, Half Moon Bay KENDALL JACKSON WINE, Sonoma LAGUNA SAPPHIRE, Laguna Beach LOS OLIVOS GROCERY, Santa Ynez MADELINE'S RESTAURANT & BISTRO, Pasadena MAYACAMA GOLF CLUB, Santa Rosa MOLSBERRY MARKETS MONTAGE RESORT, Laguna Beach NAPA VALLEY GRILL, Los Angeles NEW FRONTIERS, San Luis Obispo NEW FRONTIERS, Solvang NORTH COAST WINE GROUP, Windsor OLIVER’S, Santa Rosa ONE MARKET RESTAURANT, San Francisco ORGANIC CHEF CATERING, San Francisco OTHER AVENUES, San Francisco PLANET ORGANICS, Sonoma RAINBOW GROCERY San Francisco RITZ CARLTON HOTEL, San Francisco ROBERT’S OF WOODSIDE, Woodside ROSE PISTOLA, San Francisco SACRAMENTO NATURAL FOODS, Sacramento SAY CHEESE, San Francisco SKYHAWK VILLAGE MARKET, Santa Rosa STAR GROCERY, Claremont SUNSHINE FOODS	TERRA RESTAURANT, St Helena THE PASTA SHOP, Oakland TRAVERSO’S GOURMET FOODS. Santa Rosa 24^th ST CHEESE, San Francisco VILLA CREEK, Paso Robles VINA ROBLES, Paso Robles WHOLE FOODS, Berkleley WHOLE FOODS, Cupertino WHOLE FOODS, Fresno WHOLE FOODS, Los Altos WHOLE FOODS, Los Gatos WHOLE FOODS, Mill Valley WHOLE FOODS, Palo Alto WHOLE FOODS, Petaluma WHOLE FOODS, Redwood City WHOLE FOODS, San Francisco WHOLE FOODS, San Rafael WHOLE FOODS, San Ramon WHOLE FOODS, Santa Rosa WHOLE FOODS, Sonoma WHOLE FOODS, Walnut Creek *FLORIDA* PARK SQUARE CELLAR, Lithia ROCKING C's RANCH, Naples *GEORGIA* FIVE & TEN, Athens *LOUISIANA* MARRIOTT, NEW ORLEANS, New Orleans *MASSACHUSETTS* ANNYE’S NATURAL FOODS, Nantucket *NEW YORK* ROBERT MONDAVI WINERY, Canandaigua *OREGON* STEVE'S CHEESE (BEN FATTO FOODS), Portland *UTAH* PIVOTAL PROMONTORY DVLP, Park City *WASHINGTON* LARK, Seattle *WYOMING* JACKSON WHOLE GROCER, Jackson