Your cheese expertise,
officially recognized.

Who this is for

If you work in the industry — as a cheesemonger, cheesemaker, dairy farmer, distributor, affineur, or retailer — this rigorous course leads you to an internationally recognized credential, building on the knowledge you already have.

If you’re a passionate artisan cheese enthusiast who wants to understand what happens between the pasture and the plate, this course gives you the knowledge and confidence to purchase, present and enjoy cheese like an expert.

About the course

The Academy of Cheese (London) is the world’s leading institution for professional cheese education. Sharon Ruwart — one of the first 12 people in the world to earn the Level 3 Fellow designation and an official Academy of Cheese training partner in the United States — teaches Academy of Cheese courses at carefully chosen venues where the setting deepens the learning.

This Level 1 course is taught at Churchtown Dairy: 250 acres of biodynamic farmland in the historic Hudson Valley, home to a working herd, an on-site creamery, and an aging cave.

What you will learn

The journey of cheese — from pasture to plate

This Level 1 course will introduce the nine modules covered by the Academy of Cheese Associate exam. Sharon will go deep on the topics most alive at Churchtown, and ensure every participant knows their way around the rest for self-study.

• Milk production and cheesemaking
• Maturing, affinage, and grading
• Buying and distribution
• Presenting and serving
• Communicating about cheese
• Cheese industry knowledge
• Regulation and good practice
• A deep dive into the 25 iconic cheeses on the Level 1 exam — tasting over a dozen throughout the day, using the Academy’s Structured Approach to Tasting Cheese (SATC) framework

What makes this course distinctive

At Churchtown, the classroom, farm and dairy are steps apart. Over the course of the day, participants visit the herd and observe a milking, view the creamery equipment through the dairy window, and see firsthand where and how the farm’s cheeses are made. This unique setting brings the journey from pasture to plate to life in a way no ordinary classroom can.

Back in the classroom, each module will be presented in an engaging way with active tasting, lively discussion and interactive learning that sticks. Sharon uses the stories behind the cheese — the people, the animals, the places — to bring the whole process to life.

What’s included

• Full-day instruction with Sharon Ruwart, Academy of Cheese Fellow and official US training partner
• Tasting of over a dozen iconic cheeses from around the world, plus cheese from the farm
• A visit to the Churchtown herd and observation of a milking, plus a view into the working creamery
• A vegetarian lunch made with local, artisanal ingredients
• The official Academy of Cheese printed course materials
• One year of access to the Academy’s online course materials — everything you need to know for the Level 1 exam
• Level 1 exam fee
• All Academy study hours count toward American Cheese Society Certified Cheese Professional (CCP) education requirements

About Churchtown Dairy

Churchtown Dairy is a 250-acre biodynamic farm and creamery in Hudson, New York — a fully integrated dairy with a working herd, on-site cheesemaking, and an aging cave in the heart of the Hudson Valley’s farming region.

Photo: Sara Wallach

Course details