Reichert's Dairy Air
Lois Reichert has a passion for goats. On her forty acre farm, Lois single-handedly milks up to twelve Nubian and La Mancha goats to create her award-winning Reichert’s Dairy Air chèvre, feta, and robiola. Adhering to strict state guidelines, she heats 10 gallons of milk per day to a specific temperature, cools it, tests it for bacteria and antibiotics, and cultures and rennets it overnight. Once the curd has set, it is cut, packaged and flavored with inventive ingredients like roasted red peppers and pesto. At Reichert’s Dairy Air, every goat has a name and a story; and when asked if she wants to “get bigger”, Lois replies, “No way, it wouldn’t be any fun! I don’t get to spend enough time with the goats as it is.” Try Lois’s delicate handmade cheese and taste the care and attention to detail apparent in every bite of this delicious labor of love.
www.reichertsdairyair.com
Stepping Out for Some Reichert's Dairy Air
Ken Price, Iowa City Beer & Cheese Buyers
As faithful followers of my beer and cheese adventures through your unwavering interest in the exploits of this column, you will recall that I recently had the pleasure of touring the Milton Creamery in Milton, Iowa with a crack team of other New Pi staffers. Owners and operators Rufus, Jane, and Galen Musser showed me and my esteemed colleagues how they create their exceptional line-up of delicious cheeses made entirely with hormone-free milk from Amish farms. And when it rains it pours, because not long after that, a few other New Pi peeps and I were pleased to accept a gracious invitation from Lois Reichert to come tour her farm and see firsthand how she makes her creamy, delectable goat cheeses.
Reichert’s Dairy Air goat cheeses are hand-crafted beauties that are available in an abundant variety of flavors. There are Chevres that range from the traditional pepper and herbed varieties to the more inventive chipotle, sun-dried tomato, and cranberry walnut. Of course, the plain Chevre is delicious in its own right, with a creamy texture and a tart zippiness that comes from high quality goat’s milk. Lois also produces a delicious Feta and she even traveled to Italy to learn from experts the art of crafting fine Robiola. These wheels of cheese are like the offspring of a soft goat cheese and a creamy, delicious custard, and they are simply melt-in-your-mouth good.
The reason Lois got involved with making goat cheese in the first place was to provide her son with an alternative to cow’s milk, to which he is sensitive. In fact, it was her husband who first suggested the idea, and Lois initially balked at the prospect. But after meeting the first few goats, she fell in love with them. The Reichert’s now have a dozen or so adult milking goats, each with her own name and personality. And clever woman that she is, Lois invited us at just the right time of year to meet the newly born kids, who were, as you may imagine, cute little fuzzy crazies. I think several of my New Pi peers came home with thoughts of how to turn their own backyards into goat pens. Lois gives these goats plenty of love and attention, milking them by hand one at a time and caring for them like they are family. The care she puts into her craft really shows in the finished product; one taste and you’ll discover that Reichert’s Dairy Air truly is a labor of love.
For more photos of New Pi's visit to Reichert's Dairy Air, check out our Flickr site here.