About the Farm
In the rolling hills of Vermont, Crowley Cheese has maintained an unbroken tradition that spans two centuries, making it a living testament to American cheesemaking heritage. The story began in 1824 in the humble kitchen of the Crowley family farm in Healdville, where they first began crafting cheese from their own milk and that of their neighbors. This was a time before the American cheese factory had even been invented, when necessity and ingenuity drove farmers to transform surplus milk into something lasting and valuable.
The enterprise truly flourished when A. Winfield Crowley constructed the present-day factory in 1882, a building that would eventually earn designation as a National Historic Place and carry the distinction of being America's oldest continuously operating cheese factory. As railroads expanded across the nation in the mid-19th century, Crowley Cheese began its journey from the Vermont countryside to distant shores, reaching markets from Maine to Manhattan. The factory became part of a thriving network of small cheese producers that once dotted the Vermont landscape, when nearly every village boasted at least one cheesemaker.
While the invention of refrigeration in the early 20th century decimated most small northeastern cheesemakers, as farmers found more profit in selling fluid milk to urban markets, Crowley persevered against all odds. Today, they continue to honor their unique cheddar recipe with its distinctive rinsed curd process, creating cheese that is hand-made with raw milk, free from additives and preservatives. Their commitment to traditional methods using hand tools and time-honored techniques has earned them recognition at the prestigious American Cheese Society competition, proving that some traditions are worth preserving exactly as they were meant to be.
In the rolling hills of Vermont, Crowley Cheese has maintained an unbroken tradition that spans two centuries, making it a living testament to American cheesemaking heritage. The story began in 1824 in the humble kitchen of the Crowley family farm in Healdville, where they first began crafting cheese from their own milk and that of their neighbors. This was a time before the American cheese factory had even been invented, when necessity and ingenuity drove farmers to transform surplus milk into something lasting and valuable.
The enterprise truly flourished when A. Winfield Crowley constructed the present-day factory in 1882, a building that would eventually earn designation as a National Historic Place and carry the distinction of being America's oldest continuously operating cheese factory. As railroads expanded across the nation in the mid-19th century, Crowley Cheese began its journey from the Vermont countryside to distant shores, reaching markets from Maine to Manhattan. The factory became part of a thriving network of small cheese producers that once dotted the Vermont landscape, when nearly every village boasted at least one cheesemaker.
While the invention of refrigeration in the early 20th century decimated most small northeastern cheesemakers, as farmers found more profit in selling fluid milk to urban markets, Crowley persevered against all odds. Today, they continue to honor their unique cheddar recipe with its distinctive rinsed curd process, creating cheese that is hand-made with raw milk, free from additives and preservatives. Their commitment to traditional methods using hand tools and time-honored techniques has earned them recognition at the prestigious American Cheese Society competition, proving that some traditions are worth preserving exactly as they were meant to be.
Type of Foods Inside
Dairy
- Mild Crowley Cheese (2-5 months)
- Medium Sharp Crowley Cheese (6-10 months)
- Sharp Crowley Cheese (about 12 months)
- Extra Sharp Crowley Cheese (about 18 months)
- Extra Sharp Reserve Crowley Cheese (about two and a half years)
- Unusually Sharp Crowley Cheese (at least three and a half years)
- Garlic Crowley Cheese
- Smoked Garlic Crowley Cheese
- Garlic Chive Crowley Cheese
- Fresh Chive Crowley Cheese
- Muffaletta Crowley Cheese
- Hot Pepper Crowley Cheese
- Sage Crowley Cheese
- Smoked Crowley Cheese
- Crowley Jersey Cow A2 Aged Cheddar (about 18 months)
- Crowley Jersey Cow A2 Extra-Aged (about 3 years)
- Crowley Jersey Cow A2 Extra-Aged Reserve (at least 4 years)
- Crowley Cheese Samplers (8 oz. bars in 3-, 6-, and 9-bar quantities)
- Crowley Cheese Wheels (2.5 lb., 5 lb., and 23 lb.)
- Crowley Cheese Blocks
Dairy
- Mild Crowley Cheese (2-5 months)
- Medium Sharp Crowley Cheese (6-10 months)
- Sharp Crowley Cheese (about 12 months)
- Extra Sharp Crowley Cheese (about 18 months)
- Extra Sharp Reserve Crowley Cheese (about two and a half years)
- Unusually Sharp Crowley Cheese (at least three and a half years)
- Garlic Crowley Cheese
- Smoked Garlic Crowley Cheese
- Garlic Chive Crowley Cheese
- Fresh Chive Crowley Cheese
- Muffaletta Crowley Cheese
- Hot Pepper Crowley Cheese
- Sage Crowley Cheese
- Smoked Crowley Cheese
- Crowley Jersey Cow A2 Aged Cheddar (about 18 months)
- Crowley Jersey Cow A2 Extra-Aged (about 3 years)
- Crowley Jersey Cow A2 Extra-Aged Reserve (at least 4 years)
- Crowley Cheese Samplers (8 oz. bars in 3-, 6-, and 9-bar quantities)
- Crowley Cheese Wheels (2.5 lb., 5 lb., and 23 lb.)
- Crowley Cheese Blocks
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