Saxon Homestead Creamery

Located just north of Milwaukee, close to the shores of Lake Michigan, Saxon Homestead Creamery was founded by Karl and Robert Klessig and their brother-in-law, Jerry Heimerl, in 2005.

Having owned a traditional dairy farm on the site for many years, the brothers wanted to adapt their method of farming to allow for their cows to range freely on pasture. It was also their vision to use milk from their own herd to develop a cheesemaking facility on site. This they have achieved, and Saxon Homestead Creamery makes a range of cow's milk cheeses such as Greenfields, Big Ed's, Pastures, Saxony and Meadows.

To add to their repertoire, Saxon is also collaborating with nearby LaClare Farm. Owned by Larry Hedrich, LaClare is a small-scale goat dairy with extremely high milk quality standards. The does have room to exercise and graze on pasture, and are fed whole grains and other foods that goats love.

Big Ed's

Made to the recipe of a mountain-style cheese, Big Ed's is a cooked, pressed cheese made from raw cow's milk and weighing in at about 15lbs. The rind is smooth, thin and golden-brown in color, imprinted with the Saxon logo. The texture of Big Ed's is dense and smooth and ivory in color. Aromas are clean and mild. Flavors are mild, rich, milky and clean with notes of brown butter and caramel.

Green Fields

Aged for 70 days, Green Fields is an unpressed, semifirm, washed rind cheese made from raw cow's milk. The interior paste of the cheese is a pale, creamy yellow, becoming darker towards the rind. The texture is dense and slightly flaky, yet supple. Although flavors vary somewhat with the seasons, generally the cheeses taste clean and lactic, with notes of butter, caramel and grass.