Producer: Barn First Creamery
Location: Westfield, VT
Found at the Littleton Co-op: goat milk and specialty goat cheeses
Website: www.facebook.com/barnfirst
Before becoming dairy industry pros in their own right, Vermont’s Barn First Creamery founders Merlin Backus and Rebecca Velaquez became entranced with Vermont cheese… by buying it in New York City. However, once the couple made the move back to Merlin’s hometown of Westfield, VT, it was only natural they became involved in cheesemaking; at least, that’s how Merlin’s father saw it. Merlin’s father, Dan, set Rebecca up to work with Laini at nearby infamous Lazy Lady Farm. Rebecca and Merlin learned about goat and cheese care, and bought their first two goats from Laini. They didn’t need to build a barn – that was already on their property, hence the name Barn First Creamery. They did, however, need a milking parlor and cheese room, so the couple milked seven goats by hand from 2013-2016. Fast-forward and Barn First Creamery milks about 60 goats a year to produce milk, and cheeses from bloomy rind to blue. Rebecca’s goal was to branch out from what’s expected of goat cheese and make cheese varieties most would not try with goat milk.
While remaining pioneering in the cheese world, they still bring it all back to family and community. All of the cheeses are named after the maiden names in Rebecca and Merlin’s families, and the goats are named with assistance from their (human) kids. And, sticking to the northern Vermont way of living, they may have won a first place award from the American Cheese Society, but they still don’t have a website.
Status of product availability at the Littleton Co-op, and labeling of producers (such as local, Black-Owned Business, NH-made, etc) and product status or ingredients (gluten-free, vegan, etc) is based on available information at time of publication. The food world is an ever-changing landscape and information presented here may not reflect the most up-to-date information available.
