A letter from Ruth:
Dear All;
Please forgive the tardiness of this email; it is actually 4 years of tardiness which is more then a little irresponsible. It was just quite the rabbit hole I went down during the pandemic and my response seems to have been to go numb, as a rabbit does when it’s scared.
But it is I believe the end of the bunny trail; and time to put my head back up into the world and take stock.
At the end of this year; Monforte is officially 20 years old, and while it has been a pretty good kick at the can it hasn’t for me been an easy journey, I don’t think I did it very well; and this old grey mare just ain’t what she use to be. It’s time to rethink the next period of my life; which is definitely the last. I’m not trying to be morbid at all; just rational and thoughtful about what I want that to be and do in this next however many years life gives me.
So, the first thing one should do in these situations is figure out what the important things in life are; and for me they are family; friends; animals and craft. Perhaps not in that order but still…
And the second thing one should do is call your accountant to ask; how much cheese do I need to sell per year to be able to live a decent life; fulfill my responsibilities and be better at being a human being. And he said; if you sell the farm only about $800k which is what we sold during the pandemic; mostly at farmers markets. So, no more stress about trying to produce and sell 2.5 million dollars of cheese and not doing it very well. Instead, just the opportunity to do and be better, and do the work I love the most which is making pleasure giving craft and trying to care for people using markets as the venue.
So I sold the farm.
And now I get to apologize to people whom I have offended by swearing too much; or not being as good as I wanted to be or just generally being stressed and not always as happy as I would have hoped. This is the time for a reinvention of myself and my craft.
It also means that I can take on projects that give me pleasure and hopefully make my world a happier place; and see more of friends, family and animals. So here is to the next quarter of my life; as Hippocrates said; life is short the art of craft long, and I have much craft to learn and be better at.
May this next year be for all of you kinder and more tender then the last four; and may peace surround you.
Sante; Ruth
As some of you may already be aware, our CSA shares are back up for purchase! We had some technical difficulties with the address information form at first but it is back up and running now. Thanks so much to those who let us know it was down. You can find the CSA shares under the CSA tab for $200, $500, and $1000. On each page there is a link to an address information form (https://forms.gle/C7ExxDvvK6oaz9EG8) that we really need everyone to fill out so we can organize all the info appropriately.
Thanks for your patience!
Ruth and The Monforte Dairy Team
]]>I truly hope each and every one of you is well and coping with this new world in which we live.
Here in Stratford, Monforte is doing okay and I’m feeling quite blessed.
Six months ago, we made a choice to make the best cheese we could, and get it to you in the simplest ways possible: we sold direct to restaurants and went to every farmers market we could manage. Sadly, that meant we were unable to do home deliveries.
In so many ways this was great: Bert and I drove to Toronto six days a week and sold our stuff and goodness it was lovely to reconnect, to sell how we used to, and to be proud of what we had on the table. I have always felt that markets bring out the best of society, perhaps even more when the world seems in such an uncomfortable place. The moments of serendipity were plentiful and joyful.
But we were also able to sell a lot of cheese and as a result we touched the black at our year end. Just. But we touched it, and that felt so good after the last couple years of losses.
I understand that it is a privilege both to shop and sell at markets. I know how expensive they can be, how their hours and location can exclude so many. I truly believe society would benefit in so many ways if we could make markets (and food!) more available. That said, my life was full and rich because of this opportunity, and I had the best summer in years.
Thank you.
But now that the market season is done and the world continues to turn, it is time for us to take the next step to recovery. That means we need to continue selling as much as we can, as directly as we can. We are so glad to be doing home deliveries again and opening a new “farm store” (more details on that soon to come).
For home deliveries, we think we have found a delivery service that works for most of Ontario. Annex, Go Fetch is a new delivery company and distributor and it looks like a great fit. But there are surely going to be hiccups as we transition—there always are! Still, we are hoping you’ll give it a try, so want to thank you in advance for your patience. All the details about delivery will be updated on the website, where you can still place orders for all your favourite cheeses. And we’ll still be accepting vouchers through the new service (you just need to mail them in if your order is being delivered—if you’re picking up from one of our locations, just bring your vouchers with you as usual). Just a note for those folks a little further away: delivering to eastern and northern Ontario are a little more expensive, but I am hoping to absorb the extra costs and just charge everyone $10 per delivery.
We’ve also started to make many new foods: whey drinks, cajeta, and so so much more. It feels a little like I am back at chef school and so nervous. But it’s also super exciting. These products will be available on the website soon, and at the farm store in Liberty Village—so stay tuned!
Lastly, we were given a piece of advice by a farmer/banker/advisor this summer named Carl. Carl suggested that—due to the pandemic and my market-first business model—our current financial obligations are ‘concerningly high’. He advised that we either need to make and sell a $#!% load of cheese, or we need Wayne Gretzky to come and buy part of the farm. Just a little benevolent investment to give us a cushion. Wayne won’t lose any money but perhaps not make much either. We are game for either, or any, opportunity life gives us. But being able to concentrate more on quality than quantity and just trying to work hard and do good seems a sweet proposition. This is when serendipity needs to present itself to Monforte. Que sera, sera.
Be well, take good care, and thanks for all.
Fondly,
Ruth, Harvey, Sam, and all the dairy staff
]]>We are so happy to announce that we are back doing regular home deliveries! Some of our deadlines and delivery days have changed as we have started working with a wonderful new delivery company, Annex Go Fetch. Also, thanks to Annex, the price will remain $10. Deliveries will resume next week, all the info, including deadlines and delivery days, is listed on the Delivery and Pickup Details page. If you don't see your area listed there, please reach out, we can more than likely deliver to you!
Cheers!
Monforte Team
]]>This post should really start with a thank you to you; all of our customers who make Monforte possible. As many of you know, we are just coming to the end of an incredibly busy market season, especially so for Ruth who has been driving in and out of Toronto 6 days a week (at least) to make deliveries and sell at markets. Understandably, all of us here at Monforte have some catching up to do; whether it be on paperwork, on cheese inventory, on sleep, or even with family. So the week of Thanksgiving, October 10-16th, we will not be fulfilling any orders. We will resume the next week on Monday October 17th. We thank you so much for your kindness and understanding. We wish a everyone a restful thanksgiving full of good food, and good people.
The Monforte Team
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We are once again offering whole wheels of Piacere or Big Mamma for $35 but please know they are ripe and ready for a party.
As a hedonist, I would listen to the Magic Flute on CBC Radio 2, or watch the Buffalo Bills play the Jaguars on Sunday afternoon (or Antiques Road Show Saturday evening after market) and open a bottle of rose while enjoying either cheese.
This opportunity for you will also give us a chance to test out our new Erbs delivery model for next week. Or you can come pick up at the Dairy, Jefferson, Whychwood or Brickworks markets on the 13th of November.
Supplies are limited – but there lots of other really good cheeses to try while you are at it! Order online today!
]]>I had the opportunity to visit my best friend for a couple of days and it was as though no time had passed even though it had been a full two years. We had both bought our border collies who acted as though they had been best friends forever as well. After having had a good, but slightly weird, thanksgiving dim sum with two of my kids outside at the dairy, this company and friendship felt a little as if life was returning to some kind of normal.
But that said, the world at Monforte is not yet returned to normal and as most markets are finishing we are hoping to increase sales this winter using a new delivery service with Erb Transport from New Hamburg. Such a good and honourable company to work with and they are doing door-to-door refrigerated deliveries for us starting next week.
If you check out the website under retail sales we will ship you any products, in whatever compilation you wish, at any of the areas and or postal codes listed on the map. No more being autocratic; though you can still buy that option. The refrigerated shipping opens up all kinds of potential and the $20 delivery fee helps make it affordable for you to select whatever you wish to purchase.
We are hoping it would be okay to split the delivery cost - we would pay $10 and you as a purchaser would pay $10 and we ask for a minimum order of $50. I’m hoping that feels fair for all of us.
We have lots of new and exciting options getting started in the kitchen and think the potential of this service will be the next evolution for all of us and we thank you in advance for having been there for us and the world through this last period of time.
What an opportunity this could be for us to rethink the world and our relationship with it.]]>Baked Apples & Fresco
4 Monforte apples, cored, peeled and sliced
2tbsp of butter
2tbsp of honey
1tbsp fresh picked herbs (rosemary, thyme, etc.)
1 fresco, in chunks
fresh cracked pepper, to taste
Pre-heat your oven to 450°F. In a pie plate, spread the apple slices evenly. Pour the honey overtop and dot with butter. Sprinkle with herbs and pepper. Arrange the cheese over it all.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown on top.
Photo credit: Terry Manzo
]]>On Saturday, September 11, Monforte Dairy will take over at The Pantry Cheese! Six of Monforte cheeses will be perfectly paired with beers from 6 Ontario Craft breweries. The best part of the event? You get to have the tasting at home, kicked back in your Lazy Boy or relaxing in your yoga pants.
Join The Pairing Club for one of their most unique Beer & Cheese Pairing Nights (At Home) yet!
Hosted by The Pairing Club: Prud'homme Advanced Beer Sommelier Justin Spencer and Jeremy Lago, owner and fromager at The Pantry Cheese! This session features fresh, local Ontario beers paired with 6 Monforte cheeses with Jeremy and Justin as your guides to delicious flavour via Zoom online hangout!
Tickets are $84 and each pairing package is more than enough for 1 person and perfect for 2!
You must be 19+ to participate. Link to register is: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/beer-cheese-pairing-night-monforte-dairy-takeover-tickets-168506398173
*NOTE: Ticket price is based on FREE DELIVERY IN TORONTO ONLY (M Area Codes) OR pick-up of beer and cheeses is available from The Pantry Cheese at 1620 Gerrard Street East.]]>I remember when I started cooking and signed up for an apprenticeship. It was the first time I heard the word ‘indentured.’ I had to look it up and think through what it meant in this setting before I signed the contract.
From the reading I could find at that point, it was a contract between an employer and an employee for a period of training; but there was reciprocation in the process as far as I could tell. If I committed to working for the employer; they will commit to teaching me everything they know so that I end up educated and skilled, while they would have the labour they need to run their business.
Back then, my glasses were definitely rose tinted; but the industry was exciting and edgy and I was so excited to be part of it that I signed the contract. Imagine a job that asked everything of you but didn’t demand a university education - what a great thing for a girl who did better when she was pushed, and I loved it.
I feel that I had the best work experience anyone could have and no regrets about how hard I worked. And now, as a business owner, I keep trying to understand how to apply that same structure to current staff – just in a more modern way. I am more than willing to train as much as I can and equip my team for an industry that still seems exciting to me.
]]>How did Jessie come to be the chef for our food truck?
Why artisanal cheese?
What makes Monforte Dairy special?
Answers to these, and more, questions in our first ever podcast! Click here to give it a listen.
Your continued support for us is humbling. We look forward to seeing images of you enjoying our cheese!
Thank you.
]]>They need to go to a shin dig this weekend!
]]>You have been gracious with our soft cheeses over the last two weeks and have taken our super soft delights home to eat; enjoying them with a glass or a bottle of rose and the Olympics or the opera (or whatever gives you pleasure).
I thank you! It saved them from the landfill and hopefully covered the milk bills. But now, we have one more opportunity for you to help us out, if you please.
We have:
They need to go to a shin dig this weekend!
Here is the deal: if you have any use for a wheel and want to pay what you can, no questions asked, and want us to reserve that wheel for you please send me an email at ruth@monfortedairy.com with your name, the market you will pick the wheel up from and approximate time you will be there - then we will keep it for you.
The only condition is that you get enormous pleasure from the process.
But my favourite financial advisor customer would want you to know that the retail value of these cheeses, when perfect, is a little over $60 (so we hope you'd consider, perhaps half of that value, or honestly whatever you can).
Be well. Thank you for helping us out this week.
]]>As Canada begins to relax COVID-19 protocols, I have been thinking so much about the next period of time. Specifically about how to conduct myself in the process of recovering from this pandemic and what my business (and the country) need as part of that journey.
The government support over the last year and a half is appreciated and has saved my business. I am most grateful for having been able to access it, but it makes sense that this financial support shifts. It may be daunting, but also necessary, to shift this funding into a more relevant model. The more I look at the next twelve months, the more I am convinced that it can't just disappear.
My suggestion would be to shift it into loans for recovery strategies. In my case, I need cash to be able purchase more milk so that I can continue to dig my way out of the hole the pandemic has created for me. But the money is also needed for necessary repairs to the dairy that have been untended for the last while. However, this needs to be done with wisdom and frugality - not a "Woohoo! Free money!" mentality.
The biggest problem is that small businesses cannot finance those investments first and wait for funds to arrive. Currently, there just is no money to spend.
Perhaps this would demand a relationship of trust between the Bank of Canada and the business owner? Or no payments (or no interest) for a 1-2 year period? Perhaps business owners would have to agree to a code of conduct in addition to the financing terms? This is just brainstorming, but perhaps these can be the basis for other ideas with merit.
Lastly, if I may, not one of us asked for this pandemic but some of us were given mandates. My hope is that the government will stop thinking of another election and instead focus on living in and working within the mandate they were given. That being one of a minority government tasked with governing the country fairly and progressively. I also truly believe that we need to have the foresight to take the country into the next evolution of its culture. If there is no Tommy Douglas in the offing perhaps a committee of Ken Dryden, Joe Clark and Bob Rae, or others, to help us evolve for the next decade.
I can't even imagine the wisdom and insight necessary to get us ready for the next period of history.
Please continue the excellent work you have been doing and perhaps stop stumping?
with respect,
Ruth Klahsen, Monforte Dairy
Two little ones at home and a husband who worked so hard in a foundry, a sweet house, but not a clue about who she was or what she could (or should) be in life.
First life lesson: listen to CBC radio. Alan McFee, Don Harron, and Barbara Frum, specifically. They helped enormously.
Second life lesson: start figuring out how to develop some kind of skills and interest in a career, with absolutely no idea what would be suitable, that was no longer medical school.
My favourite memories were of eating at my Oma's house on Saturday nights with a pack of people. Curry and rice was common, as well as lots of Mennonite cooking. I have always remembered how much pleasure it gave everyone - it was a great end to a week.
Ruth Fremes was on CBC right after Romper Room at 9:30am every morning. I started getting organized with the kids and life; trying to cook whatever she made that day. Imagine risotto using Uncle Ben’s rice! Slowly, life started to fit together better. Ruth talked about a rhubarb tart from the Old Prune in Stratford and, grateful for a brother who was up for a spontaneous road trip, I started my journey into the culinary arts. That show, and Ruth, was such an important piece of my puzzle.
But the point of this blog is to talk about the mystical impact of food in a community sense.
In April, I believe it was 2014, we had finally sent out all our vouchers and cheese boxes, and I received a phone call from Ruth's husband.
He was so sorry to tell me that their cheese box had spoiled in the hall of their apartment building. Ruth had been receiving my cheeses! Unfortunately, they were not home to receive this as Ruth unexpectedly passed away while in Florida.
But he wanted me to know how much she loved Monforte cheese.
The magic of that still makes me cry.
]]>Let me start with a huge thank you and gratefulness for all the support and especially a big shout out to all the folks at St Lawrence Market for showing up to buy cheese; forgiving us so graciously for not having been there and just generally being the nicest of folks. Truly we appreciate it more then we can say.
But I also hear lots of questions about where is the Waltzing Matilda; or the Teleggio or the Blue and that’s where the defensiveness wants to show itself. So instead it gave me pause to try and rethink the place we are in and what we can actually do about it.
The truth is the Saturday afternoon at the opera is useful on the way home from market for contemplation.
We have survived the pandemic and have tried to keep as close as we can to paying the bills on time but it has certainly been a snug little year cash wise. Truth be told we just don’t have money to buy as much milk as I wish. So as a business I believe our opportunities to dig our way out of this hole is by diversifying things we can produce in our lovely new kitchen quickly and easily that can perhaps increase sales of other options, so next week this girl is going back into chefs whites to start to make crackers; and whey drinks and cajita and chutneys and whatever else we can to sell at market that work with cheese.
I still remember Bill Hutt telling me pretty vehemently that no matter what craft we do our job is to sell our “shit”. And most days I think of Bill at over 80 still performing Lear and giving it everything he had; and always being a crusty old bugger with a twinkle in his eye as he stole the apprentice’s lunch.
So if you have thoughts on things that would go with the cheese we do have and would give you a fuller Monforte experience and not step on other producers toes please let me know and thanks for all.
Hopefully see you Saturday; fondly; Ruth]]>This week, Kathy brought home butter. Her big goal was to try to tackle pastry.
]]>This week, Kathy brought home butter. Her big goal was to try to tackle pastry. Not a chef by any means (although, Kathy does have 20 years of experience in the food service industry), she would categorize herself more as a home cook. In her words, “not the kind of home cook where it's ‘mom's cooking is the best I've ever tasted’, but more like ‘I have a bunch of this in the fridge, what could I make that my family might possibly eat’”.
Do you have memories of your mom or your grandma's pastry? Kathy remembers that it was always butter pastry and she has tried to make her own 3 times before; but pastry has always been challenging for her. She handles it far too much, lacks the patience to break up the butter into the flour properly and Kathy doesn’t stop and chill it thoroughly between stages. But this week, she had a lot of ground pork, a lot of apples, and fresh butter. So yes. Kathy made pastry.
The first thing Kathy did before she made the pastry was to taste the butter. She said that she wished she could “…find the words to describe it. It just tasted so clean, and pure. It felt special.”
The next thing she noticed was how the butter performed as she broke it up into the flour. Because this was not a traditional pressed block of butter, but a loosely packed ball of fresh churned glory, it broke up into the flour like a dream. It was like it fell into bits into the flour, but in a good way. Like it really wanted to be pastry.
Adding the water and getting the right consistency for the first knead has traditionally been a struggle for Kathy. Usually, she ends up with a sticky mess that she overworks like crazy. Not this time. This time, the water, butter and flour came together effortlessly. It felt so good to knead that first ball together. Like Kathy knew what she was doing. Her grandma would be proud!
Kathy chilled the dough for over an hour as she chopped the apples and made the Tourtiere filling. Then she (as tradition dictates) overworked the dough as she tried to roll it out. Kathy also made pretty much of a disaster of the edges of her pies. But both pies baked off beautifully despite her efforts to sabotage them, and Kathy’s family had them both gobbled up in less than 12 hours. They weren't pretty, but they were delicious.
Kathy is calling that a win, both on the family front and on the mom front. And she will be making pastry again - she needs to practice that whole "rolling out the dough thing". And her family is down for pie of any type, any day.
Thank you, Monforte butter. Thank you for bringing Kathy one step closer to the home cook she wants to be.
What would you make with Monforte's fresh butter?
]]>There were a few instances for me but the one I was thinking of this morning was being on a trail ride and desperately in love (and to this day) with horses...
]]>There were a few instances for me but the one I was thinking of this morning was being on a trail ride and desperately in love (and to this day) with horses; but on turning around to head back to the barn the horse taking off home at a flat out gallop, and this 12 year old girl just trying desperately to stay on and being so scared and feeling so out of control; and this overwhelming strangely quiet hysteria.
I realized this week that for months and months; and perhaps for years, most of my time has been trying to hold this dairy together in the state of anticipating that kind of fear, and trying to tamp down the reaction of hysteria. It has been a bit of a ride.
But this week; for the first time in a long time it was not so. This week for chunks of time there was logic and support and not this paralyzing fear. Probably being back in the dairy so much, having hired some truly strong young staff? Not sure, but so so grateful.
But to be able to concentrate on making good cheese and not being terrified every minute was so joyful.
I am so grateful and perhaps now that I have tasted the work without the hysteria it can become more a part of my life on a regular basis. But I wanted to thank each of you for the support in this journey and I wish for each of you peace in this discombobulated time.
fondly, Ruth
]]>Only available at a market near you.
Check out all the great market locations where Monforte is available HERE!
Photo Credit: Terry Manzo (@tmanzophoto) www.terrymanzo.com
When we finally got milk into the vats, I called my middle son, Ben (the wise one), and asked him the significance of 40, both historically and from a religious perspective.
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Photo Credit: Terry Manzo (@tmanzophoto) www.terrymanzo.com
]]>Other little things, like that nasty virus we all worry about now, seem far less magical. The dairy, like most places, can be a complicated place to work these days. Ruth will tell you that cheesemaking is a communal act—it is hard work, better done together. So how do we make cheese, pack orders, and get them to your door when one of us gets sick? These days, we’ve made a stance to err on the side of—what Daniel calls—“an abundance of caution.” If we are even a little worried, we’ll change plans and try to figure it out. This month that meant we delayed deliveries and cancelled markets twice. However, we are sure it’s the correct thing to do. Believe us, we love seeing you at market or, increasingly, at your front door. And we also really need the money. But our mission to keep everybody both fed and safe.
So, if you ever get an email or a text saying we are delaying our delivery or won’t be at market, please know that we are working hard to make arrangements. Usually that will mean you’ll get your cheese a couple days late, or at worst, a week. But remember, it is cheese. As one of our customers recently commented, it only improves with age. We’d rather get it to you late than never, and possibly even better! So please keep shopping and support your local businesses.
We want to thank you for your continued support and patience over these tricky times. We trust that this current crisis too shall pass, and it will make us happier than ever when we see you again in person!
Fondly,
The Monforte Team