If you’re a fan of fromage (that’s French for cheese), crazy for queso, or just cheered by cheese, then you might want to work one of these cheese events into your plans.

Top 5 Cheese Festival Picks:
(listed chronologically)

California’s Artisan Cheese Festival
March 7 - Petaluma, CA
Four days to learn about and taste artisan cheese…and that it happens to be in Sonoma wine country is a bonus!

Oregon Cheese Festival
March 15 - Central Point, OR
Sample cow, sheep and goat cheese from Oregon and northern California creameries.

Seattle Cheese Festival
May 16-18 - Pike Place Market, Seattle, WA
Taste more than 200 cheeses from local and international producers along the cobblestone street.

Amish Country Cheese Festival
Labor Day Weekend, August 30–September 1 - Arthur, IL
National Cheese Eating Championship. Need we say more?

Riverbank Cheese & Wine Exposition
October 11 & 12 - Riverbank, CA
Cheese and wine, together at last! Taste California wines and cheeses, and enjoy the street fair.

And there is much, much more cheese goodness in the world, including cheese tasting classes, and even cheese-making school! Here’s a more extensive list of 2008 Cheese Festivals & Events.

Cheese History:
Many historians believe that cheesemaking originated in the Middle East about 5,000 years ago. One legend cites the “discoverer” of cheese was an Arab nomad, who had filled his drinking bladder with milk to sustain him for a long journey across the desert. While resting on his trip, he discovered that the milk had separated into a watery liquid and solid white lumps. His drinking bladder was made from the stomach of a young animal, which contained a coagulating enzyme known as rennin. The rennin separated the curds (solid white lumps) and whey (watery liquid). And thus the first cheese was born…though it probably didn’t taste anything like a nice wedge of Stilton!

Photo credit: Flickr user cathou_cathare

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