Last night I managed to score a front row seat at the NZ Champion of Cheese Awards for 2016.
While I was of course expecting to taste some delicious cheese and mighty fine they were at that, what I didn’t expect was the extent of the passion and pride of our cheese makers.

One by one those that took to the podium to accept their awards appreciated their staff, families and farmers with the heart felt tribute of Jeanne van Kuyk (pictured ) of Aroha Organic Goat Dairy to both her girls (goats) and husband, bringing tears to many eyes.  After first winning the Champion Goats Cheese award, Jeanne was a popular winner of the Champion Cheesemaker Award and the first female artisan cheesemaker in awards history to take out this title.

While of course some of the medal winners are owned by the big brand names there are still passionate individuals behind the brand, working hard to bring the best possible product to the table.

Puhoi Valley, under the guidance of their recently appointed highly skilled cheesemaker Franck Beaurain, took out many medals including the supreme title of Champion of Champions award with the Puhoi Valley Kawau Blue.  Kawau Blue is labelled in the retail sector as Puhoi Valley Gorgonzola Style Blue.  Officially the best big cheese in the country, Puhoi Kawau Blue was described by judges as an excellent example of a mild to medium flavoured blue cheese. “This has great rind development and superb even blue distribution. The texture is creamy with a great balance of spicy, savoury and sweet flavours,” Master Judge, Russell Smith said.
Another blue to take out top honours is Kapiti Kahurangi being the New World Champion Favourite Cheese Award by public vote.

New Zealanders have had a long love affair with Dutch style cheeses and this is evident in Mercer Cheese Extra Mature Gouda winning the Puhoi Valley Champion Artisan Cheese Award for smaller producers. This year saw a hat-trick for Mercer Cheese with their third consecutive supreme artisan win.

No stranger to medals is Miel Meyer from the family business Meyer Cheese. In accepting the top award for the highly contested Dutch Style Cheese, Miel tells us how his mum tasted the cheese from the scrap pieces set aside for family consumption and insisted he enter this particular cheese in the awards.  Great advice indeed.

Another notable and overwhelmed winner was Joanie from Hawkes Bay’s Origin Earth. The company won the Kiwi Labels Champion Feta Cheese Award for its Origin Earth Feta and the Cheeselinks Champion Flavoured Cheese Award for its Smoked Sheep Cheese.

Personally I was thrilled to see Westgold butter from my home town Hokitika take out top butter.  My parents have raved about it for years.
“This is the sort of butter you just want to slather more and more on. It’s a very good example of a technically well-made butter resulting in an even, smooth texture and delicate sweet flavours,” Smith said.

With such a vast array of fabulous NZ cheese I can’t help but be reminded how much further we have moved along from the days of Ches and Dale and foil wrapped cheese triangles!

Category Winners 2016

Countdown Champion of Champions Cheese Award
Puhoi Valley Kawau Blue
Puhoi Valley Cheese
Puhoi Valley Champion Artisan Cheese Award
Mercer Extra Mature Gouda
Mercer Cheese
Milk Test NZ Champion Cheesemaker Award
Jeanne van Kuyk
Aroha Organic Goat Cheese
Food for Chefs Champion Butter Award
Westgold Unsalted Butter – Westland Milk Products
Green Valley Dairies Champion Yoghurt Award
Symbio Probalance Blueberry Wholegrain Yoghurt – Fonterra Brands NZ
The Langham Champion Fresh Unripened Cheese Award
Over The Moon ‘Volcano’ – Over The Moon Dairy Company
Kiwi Labels Champion Feta Cheese Award
Origin Earth Feta – Origin Earth
Innovative Packaging Champion Soft White Rind Cheese Award
Grinning Gecko Brie – Grinning Gecko Cheese Co
180 degrees Champion Goat Cheese Award
Aroha Raw Milk Jubilee – Aroha Organic Goat Company
NZ Chefs Association Champion Sheep Cheese Award
Mercer Pecorino – Mercer Cheese
Thermaflo Champion Washed Rind Cheese Award
Puhoi Valley Cellar Range Washed Rind – Puhoi Valley Cheese
Ecolab Champion Blue Cheese Award
Puhoi Valley Kawau Blue – Puhoi Valley Cheese
Eurofins NZ Champion European Style Cheese Award
Farmhouse Mature – Crescent Dairy Goats
AsureQuality Champion Dutch Style Cheese Award
Meyer Tasty Gouda – Meyer Gouda Cheese
Ministry for Primary Industries Champion New Cheese Award
Matariki – Wangapeka Family Dairy
Primary ITO Aspiring Cheesemaker Award
Loran Mathis – Over The Moon Dairy Company
Fonterra Co-operative Group Champion Original Cheese Award
Pumahana – Karikaas Natural Dairy Products
Cheeselinks Champion Flavoured Cheese Award
Origin Earth Smoked Sheep Cheese – Origin Earth
Tetra Pak Champion Cheddar Cheese Award
Kapiti Tuteremoana Cheddar – Fonterra Brands NZ
Renco New Zealand Champion Export Cheese Award
Puhoi Valley Fresh Goat – Puhoi Valley Cheese
New World Champion Favourite Cheese Award
Kapiti Kahurangi – Fonterra Brands NZ
Caspak Champion Cheese Packaging Award
Dairyworks Grated Cheese range – Dairyworks
Curds & Whey Champion Home Crafted Cheese & Cheesemaker
Sentry Hill Quark – Phillippa White

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This month sees New Zealand’s most talented artisan food producers awarded for their talents in the Cuisine Artisan Awards 2016.  The winners delicious and innovative products range from frankfurters to ice cream.

This year is the eighth in the annual Cuisine Artisan Awards – proudly supported by L’affare – and attracted a large number of entries.
Judging was no easy feat as I sat with the other judges and sipped, nibbled and crunched our way through a vast array of products to finally get to the 10 winners.. The artisan producers who made the cut this year hail from as far north as Ohaeawai and Wanaka in the south.
Wellington Chocolate Factory (WCF) was named Supreme Winner for its Great War Bar, a coconutty, Anzac-biscuity treat made to commemorate the centenary of World War I and raise funds for Wellington’s Great War Exhibition.

In researching how war and chocolate might be connected, WCF investigated the ingredients of the D ration bar – the United States’ standard military ration during World War II. The fact this bar was made with oat flour prompted the company to include oats in its new creation, which was combined with coconut in a nod to the World War I-inspired Anzac biscuit.
Known for their stylish artistic chocolate wrappers, the Great War Bar is suitably wrapped in poppies, soldiers and trenches as designed by contemporary artist Misery, an image that would be equally at home on your wall as on your chocolcate.

It’s the second Cuisine Artisan Award for Wellington Chocolate Factory, which was runner-up in the 2015 awards for its delicious Salted Brittle Caramel. The WCF was founded just over two years ago and in that time has impressed not only with its seriously delicious chocolate, but also its commitment to ethical and sustainable practices.

Wanaka-based The People’s Bread was named runner-up for its Multigrain Sourdough, made from locally sourced, organic grains including rye, several kinds of blonde wheat, brown rice and konini. The judges loved that owners Ruth and Jeremy source the organic grains locally, grind their own flour and even deliver the loaves on an electric bicycle.

Also from Wanaka, Pembroke Patisserie made the winners’ list with its thin, crisp Gingerbread Biscuits which have a lovely warm ginger flavour.

Northland’s Ludbrook House continued its winning ways, adding a third Cuisine Artisan Award to their cabinet for its Merlot Grape Jelly.

The Auckland region had two winners, Bonnie Goods’ Canterbury Linseed Oatcakes and Alderson’s Kawa Kawa Salsa Verde.

Duck Island’s Roasted White Chocolate and Miso Ice Cream, made in Hamilton, and Frankfurters from Frank’s Sausages in Te Aroha, are proudly flying the flag for the Waikato district.

Just north of Wellington, Kapiti Artisan Bakehouse has won its second Cuisine Artisan Award with the spicy Ghost Chilli Ciabatta, a collaboration with another previous winner, Culley’s hot sauces.

The Canterbury region is represented by WabiO’s The Headless Kombucha, a thoroughly unique fermented tea drink.

Cuisine Artisan Awards head judge Fiona Smith says deciding the winners is always a tough task. There were more than 60 entries this year, including some new and interesting flavour combinations that challenged and delighted the judges’ taste buds.

“We’ve had some incredibly interesting entries, with the most surprising being Duck Island’s Roasted White Chocolate and Miso Ice Cream. I wasn’t sure what I’d think but as soon as I had my first spoonful, I couldn’t stop. It’s absolutely delicious.”

Find profiles of the winners in the March 2016 issue of Cuisine, on sale 15 February. Taste Cuisine‘s winning products at the Farro Fresh Market Day at Constellation Drive on Auckland’s North Shore on Saturday 20 February from 11 am to 2 pm. Farro Fresh stocks all the winning products and is pleased to support these awards as a silver sponsor.

Or join the Cuisine team at Auckland’s EURO on Wednesday 9 March from 6pm where renowned chef Gareth Stewart  will serve a stunning six-course menu featuring all of the 2016 winning products matched to prestige wines from Marisco Vineyard’s Kings Series. Marisco are also a silver sponsor of the Cuisine Artisan Awards.

Cuisine Artisan Awards – 2016 Winners

• Supreme Winner: Wellington Chocolate Factory Great War Bar (Wellington), RRP $13.50
• Supreme Runner-Up: The People’s Bread Multigrain Sourdough (Wanaka) RRP $13
• Pembroke Patisserie Gingerbread Biscuits (Wanaka) RRP $8.50
• Duck Island Roasted White Chocolate and Miso Ice Cream (Waikato) RRP $13
• WabiO The Headless Kombucha (Christchurch) RRP $5.50
• Bonnie Canterbury Linseed Oatcakes (Auckland), RRP $8
• Kapiti Artisan Bakehouse Ghost Chilli Ciabatta (Kapiti Coast) RRP $5.49
• Alderson’s Kawa Kawa Salsa Verde (Auckland) RRP $8
• Ludbrook House Merlot Grape Jelly (Northland) RRP $9
• Frank’s Sausages Frankfurters (Waikato) RRP $8.99

For further information visit cuisine.co.nz