CHEESEMASTER BUILDS VOLUME AT FAIRWAY

ROSEANNE HARPER

NEW YORK -- Fairway Markets here trotted out a master cheesemaker to launch his Wisconsin farmstead cheese in-store, and sold at least 100 pounds in the first afternoon.

The fanfare around the introduction of the product, Widmer's brick cheese, stimulated higher sales throughout the store, according to Steve Jenkins, general manager of Fairway Markets, which operates two upscale supermarkets in Manhattan.

"Everybody who tasted it, bought it," said Jenkins. The retail price was $5.99 a pound.

To unveil the Widmer brick, Fairway hosted a demonstration-cum-seminar at its upper Manhattan store, featuring the manufacturer, Joe Widmer, who is also one of only eight certified master cheesemakers in the United States.

In addition to offering tastes of the cheese, Widmer told Fairway customers the brick cheese story: how the product was developed and how it got its name. He even told the story of how his Swiss-born grandfather began producing cheeses in the small town of Theresa, Wis., in 1922.

Steve Jenkins, himself a cheese guru and author of "Cheese Primer," a comprehensive guide to cheese and cheese merchandising, is an impassioned advocate of educating consumers about cheese. Jenkins said he believes most supermarkets are missing a big money-making opportunity by not creatively merchandising and marketing specialty cheeses, because cheese can drive up the whole store's sales.

He commented that while supermarkets may have a sizable display of specialty cheeses, it's often a jumble that looks neglected. "They don't get the significance of cheese, or it's magnificence. Plainly, they either don't know or don't care," he said.

"I've been able to show in the past that you can double a store's gross sales with smart merchandising of cheeses and related items such as olive oils and vinegars," Jenkins said, referring to his experiences as a consultant to supermarkets.

While most of the 300 cheeses offered at Fairway are imported, American farmstead cheeses get a great deal of attention from Jenkins. "I've been a champion of American artisanal cheeses for 10 years," he said, pointing out that he carries varieties such as a goat's milk cheese and a soft, ripened sheep's milk cheese, both made by small companies in upstate New York.

"I have so much respect for the Widmers and their operation. It's the only brick cheese I would carry," Jenkins added, explaining that the quality and flavor are top flight. "It's because it's made by hand and the milk they use makes a difference."

The family gets its milk from selected herds, and it adheres to the original method of cheese-making. Brick cheese, a surface-ripened, pungent, semisoft cheese that's sometimes called a cousin to Limburger, gets its name from the bricks put on top of it to press out excess moisture. It is common in the Midwest, but not so well-known on the East Coast.

"It takes work on the retailer's part to make brick work here," Jenkins said. But customers at Fairway's 35,000-square-foot store in upper Manhattan were eager to try the brick cheese and to hear about how it is made.

The demo was heralded one Saturday last month with a huge, colorful banner that said, "Welcome Joe Widmer, master cheesemaker from Wisconsin." Signs on the demo table read, "You've heard of brick cheese. This is the ORIGINAL brick cheese."

Jenkins said Widmer's manner and enthusiasm played a role in attracting people to the demo and getting them to taste the product. "He had an almost visible aura of pride around him -- pride in the cheese and in his family's business. People asked him how the cheese was made and how his family got into cheesemaking, and they listened and asked questions."

Jenkins added that when the subject of cheesemaking is broached, people's eyes often glaze over; but not the day Joe Widmer was answering their questions.

"They weren't afraid they'd be bored to death by the answers," Jenkins said.

Widmer told SN he found Fairway's customers were particularly responsive. "They asked me if I milk cows, and they really wanted to know how brick cheese is made, and couldn't believe I live above a cheese factory," Widmer said.

He explained that he and his family live in a house over the original cheese plant and that his family still uses the same bricks used by his grandfather in the brick-cheesemaking process.

Widmer was certified just this spring as a master cheesemaker by the University of Wisconsin, Madison, after completing three years of courses and being tested to qualify for the certification.

"It requires a big commitment. You have to complete courses in microbioloy and sanitation. In one course, we learned to grade cheeses," Widmer said.

His credentials and his background in artisanal cheesemaking make Widmer a sought-after speaker on cheese in his part of the country; but he said his presentation at Fairway was his first at an East Coast supermarket.

Jenkins said the day that Widmer spoke to customers at Fairway was perfect for the occasion. "It was a beautiful day. Most people were out playing."

Because of the weather, Fairway's store wasn't overly crowded, and that worked well for the demonstration, he explained.

"We're usually jammed on a Saturday afternoon and demos can get in the way. The people can create an impasse," he said.

The trick was that the demo was so successful that it stimulated sales throughout the store, on what would have otherwise been a relatively slow day. "We did better than we normally would have on a beautiful day like that," Jenkins said.

The Widmer cheese was sampled "straight," with no crackers or accompaniments, in order to allow customers to fully taste the product itself. "We'd offer a small block on a toothpick and then slice whatever amount they wanted to buy from 5-pound blocks," Widmer said.

He and Jenkins did offer customers tips on what goes well with the cheese. "Both red and white wines go well with it, and it's very good with fruits like apples and pears," Widmer said.

His favorite way to eat brick cheese is on pizza, he added. "It's not as pungent when it's cooked, but it has so much more flavor than mozzarella."