Arethusa Europa Named U.S. Champion Cheese, Earning Historic Second Consecutive Victory

GREEN BAY, Wis., March 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Arethusa Europa today earned a second consecutive win at the U.S. Championship Cheese Contest, a first in the competition's history.  The aged gouda, made by Arethusa Farm Dairy in Bantam, Connecticut, bested 2,414 entries, winning with a score of 98.89 out of 100, just one hundredth of a point ahead of its closest competition.

First runner-up in the contest, with a score of 98.88, is St. Malachi Reserve, made by The Farm at Doe Run in Coatesville, Pennsylvania. The second runner-up position was awarded to Cello Organic Copper Kettle Parmesan, made by Lake Country Dairy-Schuman Cheese in Turtle Lake, Wisconsin, with a score of 98.81.

"The razor-thin margins that separated our Contest finalists speak to the caliber of U.S. cheesemakers' talent. Congratulations go to the team at Arethusa Farm Dairy, and praise is in order for all our competitors' commitment to excellence in the art and science of cheesemaking," said John Umhoefer, Executive Director of Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association (WCMA), which hosts the Contest.

A total of 31 U.S. states were represented in the 2025 U.S. Championship Cheese Contest, with entries submitted across 117 classes. With an impressive 55 Best of Class finishes, cheesemakers from Wisconsin earned the highest number of gold medals. Second in that ranking is Vermont, earning 13 first-place medals. Idaho cheesemakers earned third place, taking home the gold in ten classes.

Hosted biennially by WCMA since 1981, the U.S. Championship Cheese Contest is the largest technical dairy products evaluation in the nation. Complete results are available at USChampionCheese.org.

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SOURCE United States Championship Cheese Contest