Joe Matos Cheese Co.– A journey to the Azores in our own backyard
What do you get when you mix old world Portuguese charm, five generations of traditional cheese making and a hard-working family farm? Three heartwarming, unpretentious and memorable cheeses and a business true to its roots.
When Joe and Mary Matos immigrated from the volcanic island of Sao Jorge in the Azores in the mid 1960’s after they got married, they eventually settled in the Laguna de Santa Rosa. They brought with them their cherished family cheese recipes and that powerful stuff most immigrants bring to their new homes and communities, a drive to succeed, inner strength and heart that is a vital component to any community. This is another proof that embracing the diversity that all cultures bring to the community will revive health, hope and strength to the collective and individual body and mind.
We have had the opportunity to visit the Matos farm several occasions and every experience has given a sense of being in another time and place. It is an oasis of old-world Portuguese calm, especially welcome now as the opportunity to travel is not something most of us pursue.
The farm practices the tradition of organic pasture-based bio dynamic farming, utilizing food waste diversion, which is another way of saying, these cows have a great diet. It is quite an image to see at least thirty happy Holstein, Jersey and crossbred dairy cows happily munching down on bright orange pumpkins, which come from a variety of local sources. In fact the farm is so efficient in it’s practice of using left-overs, the fruit and vegetable remains that would normally end up at the dump, that these happy cows are the only bovines I know of that actually eat a multi course meal every day that would warm any vegetarian’s heart.
When Joe and Mary became owners of the farm in 1979 and acquired their first four cows, they were committed to maintaining the old-world traditions that were so important to them and in due course they became and to this day are the only cheesemakers in California authorized to maintain their generations old, time honored cheese-making practices.
Joe, who is now eighty years old, still works hard on the farm. When we pulled up in their parking lot earlier today, he was steering a large tractor across the muddy field. Looking at him, one would never imagine that he had suffered an injury in 2006. Passing the business on to the seventh-generation family members has freed him up to focus on the work that he loves and energizes him. His granddaughter Tiffany now manages much of the business and one can see how love and support within a family, its lifeblood is.
Currently Joe Matos Cheese offers 3 St. Jorge cheeses at various stages in the aging process. We purchased a pound of each and back at home used a bit of the most aged cheese in our pasta. It framed the mushrooms, garlic, tomatoes and linguini with the perfect hint of piquant flavor. The milk that goes into the cheese has a 20% fat count which is almost unheard of in the industry. The beef they offer is of superb quality and custom butchered. You can subscribe to one of their beef shares.
Like a trip to the Azores, the flavor and experience at Joe Matos Cheese is time well spent.
3669 Llano Rd
Santa Rosa, CA 95407
707-584-5283
Farm and tasting room open 9am to 5pm daily
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