Retiring after 31 years.
Sally Jackson of Oroville, Washington made her cheese the way it has been made for centuries in other parts of the world – that is to say, in somewhat primitive conditions. She has been a widely respected pioneer in the American artisinal cheese movement. Using the milk from her small herd of cows, goats and sheep, she quietly helped to raise the bar on what cheese can be in this country.
Courtesy of Madame Fromage |
If you haven’t had the pleasure of tasting her cheese, here’s part of a short review by Madame Fromage (http://madamefromage.blogspot.com/2010/07/sally-jackson-goat-cheese.html). She begins:
Unfortunately, her career has ended sadly. In November, the Washington State Dept of Agriculture gave her 30 days to upgrade her facilities or be forced to close. Then, coincidentally, a month later, the FDA claimed to have found evidence of e-coli in her cheese and they asked her to do a voluntary recall. She cooperated and issued a recall on December 17th. A few days later she decided to retire from the business.
We don’t know the facts about all this, but we do know she will be missed. This excerpt from one of her retailer’s blog articles expresses our sentiments well:
http://calfandkid.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Twenty one years ago, we published an article about Sally in our Cheesemakers’ Journal (now called our Moosletter). Bob Carroll visited her farm and captured her personality and her lifestyle in Issue 30, 1989:
By Robert Carroll
I first met Sally Jackson on a crisp, sunny day in November. The drive from Spokane, Washington to Oroville had been a long one; however, the countryside was magnificent, especially the ride over the Cascades. Sally’s farm was on the western side of the Cascades looking down over a large valley.
Photo courtesy Tami Parr, Pacific Northwest Cheese Project |
Photo courtesy Tami Parr, Pacific Northwest Cheese Project |
Thank you, Sally, for all you have accomplished. We wish you the very best.
Sally’s website-http://sallyjacksoncheeses.com/index.htm
Sally’s e-mail: jaxon@televar.com
Madame Fromage says
Beautifully done, Jeri!