What’s It Like Being an Aspiring Cheesemonger?
Ever wonder what it’s like to work behind the cheese counter of a local wine & cheese shop? Please, right this way…
Until being hired to work at my local cheese shop, I had only the vaguest concept of what being an aspiring cheesemonger actually entailed. Seems like the kind of work that puts you front and center to some of the best cheeses in the world, and gets you interacting with people who are looking for guidance on which cheeses are best for them… right?
After five months on the job, I can say with confidence that working in a shop’s cheese department does indeed include these elements, yet So Much More. There’s cheese to weigh, labels to print, customers to please, inventory to take, sandwiches to make, platters to create, meat to cut (and as a decades-long vegetarian, this last one really throws me for a loop, but nonetheless I march on in the name of Artisanal Delights).
Sometimes you’ve got barely anything to do, sometimes you’re so crazed you wonder how you haven’t started pulling out your own hair. When the shop is very busy - which it often is on weeknights leading into the weekend and the weekends themselves - my coworkers and I pick out cheeses, assemble cheese and charcuterie platters, and ensure that we’re doing everything we can to give the customers a fantastic, personalized experience that leaves them happier going out of the store than they were when they came in.
Five months into this job, I have my regulars who come in every Saturday for cheese, or wine sampling, or both. Seeing a varied group of people again and again and forming the kind of unexpected bonds that we all have the pleasure of finding in the least expected places absolutely makes my heart soar. It is without a doubt one of the most rewarding parts of working in a people-centric job. I love seeing the folks I’ve known for months, whose tastes I’m familiarizing myself with, whose senses of humor I appreciate, with whom I have the pleasure of connecting and sharing cheese each week.
Beyond the more literal tasks involved in my Aspiring Cheesemonger journey, I’ve begun to learn that working in a cheese shop (or very likely any customer-centric service job) is about a lot more than simply being good at knowing and recommending cheese. On multiple occasions, I’ve felt the magic and humility of genuine person-to-person connection after someone tells me about their crappy day and the cheese they’d like to buy to treat themselves that evening, or the mother whose child is going away to college in a few days and who wants to put together a special cheese board for one of their last meals together as a family for a while, or someone who is intrigued by all the possibilities cheese holds and whose eyes light up when I describe the particular awesomeness of a cheese I tried recently that I’m confident they would love.
My top picks of the moment:
Coupole from Vermont Creamery - the duality of textures in this aged goat’s milk cheese is so freaking cool. The rind, creamline, and paste (especially in the less aged iterations) is like an all-out rager in your mouth.
Artikaas 5-Year Gouda - With its delectably fatty, dense mouthfeel and strong notes of caramelized nuts and butterscotch, I describe eating a cube of this cheese as similar to eating a snicker candy bar… and if that’s wrong, I don’t want to be right.
Mt Tam by Cowgirl Creamery - shout out to a female-founded, Organic creamery in California! This indulgent, 7 oz mini wheel is the perfect addition to any cheese board or simply to snack on with no pairings. It’s a triple cream, bloomy rind cheese with the most luscious texture, a buttery composition with notes of mellow mushroom and the very grass on which the creamery’s cows graze.
And alas, without slower periods at a cheese shop, there can be no preparation for the busy times! During less demanding time blocks, popular pastimes for cheese workers include:
Going through individually wrapped cheeses and shelf products to check expiration dates
Doing a sweep of the cheese fridges to pull out too-tiny-to-sell or simply too-old-to-sell cheese cuts
Tidying up behind the cheese counter by wiping surfaces, washing dishes, and ensuring that things are as neat as can be
Packing out prepared foods & cubing cheeses for individual sales containers then weighing them
… and oh, so much more. My personal favorite during times when not many customers are in the shop is being on Expiration Date Duty. Why? Well, there are two answers to this very valid question. First, the shop I work in sells fine cheeses & gourmet products that anyone would be lucky to stumble upon for a meal, a party, and even a snack for one. Second, it’s against the health code to sell products past their “sell by” dates. When items expire, any store must get rid of them one way or another. My store is very kind to let employees have their pick of any goods that expire, and I find that this is spectacular motivation to be incredibly thorough when checking each and every product in the store. Let’s just say, my pantry (and pantries of my parents, friends, and anyone I know who likes fine foods) has never been better stocked ;)
