For anyone who questions northern California’s role in what amounts to a Gold Rush in cheese making, awards taken by regional artisans prove a point: the scene is incredibly vital.  At the twentieth annual conference of the American Cheese Society held in San Francisco in July, more than 600 cheeses were entered (up from 400 last year) and twenty-two judges - experts drawn from fields like dairy science, marketing, food writing and production - spent two intense days making their decisions.

When the results were announced winners were from all across the country, but the majority were from California, many from ranches and coastal holdings in this part of the state.

Best of Show, a coveted title, went to Cowgirl Creamery of Point Reyes Station for Red Hawk, a lush, buttery round made with rich organic milk from Straus Family Creamery of Marshall. Sue Conley, creator of Red Hawk and other distinctive formulas for the company, was as surprised as anyone. "Judges usually go for aged cheese," she said, and her winner is a fresh triple-crème similar to French Epoisse, with an almost mushroom aroma. It is also washed-rind, a term describing a labor-intensive process during which cheeses are hand-washed with a liquid of the cheese maker’s choice (cider, wine, vinegar) and turned often to encourage the growth of beneficial bacteria that develop the flavors. Obviously this means that the top cheese will never show up in markets in great quantities across the country. Conley says that she's hoping to increase production if possible, but admits, "It will always be a precious commodity."

Taking first place in their categories were names already familiar to northern California cheese lovers: Cypress Grove of McKinleyville (chevre log and herb chevre), Marin French Cheese Company of Petaluma (triple crème brie), Spring Hill Jersey Farm of Petaluma (dry Jack), Redwood Hill Farm Goat Dairy of Sebastopol (chevre) and Bellwether Farms of Petaluma (crème fraiche). Other nearby blue ribbon winners were cheddar producer Fiscalini Cheese Co. of Modesto, Harley Farms of Pescadero (fromage blanc) and Sierra Nevada Cheese Co. of Willows (cheese spread).

This year’s conference marked the debut of A Festival of Cheeses, a grand public tasting at the San Francisco Ferry Building. More than 800 aficionados showed up to sample hundreds and hundreds of choice products. It was a mecca of cheesedom, a swooningly aromatic display stacked and laid out in the vast central hall of the historic landmark building.

John Greeley, judging chair of the competition, explained that there is an almost totally different field, now. In the early days the majority of American cheeses were based on European styles, but this is no longer true. "During the last ten years and especially during the past five the American cheese maker has created and entered more cheeses of their own invention than any other style. Americans now have their own traditions firmly in place."

Nowhere is this more obvious than in California’s northern wine country.

Note: It is possible to visit several of the cheese makers to see how their prizewinners are made. A sampler follows: For a complete list of entrants and winners, visit www.cheesesociety.org.

*Cowgirl Creamery, 80 4th St., Point Reyes Station, 415/663-9335 *Marin French Cheese Company, 7500 Red Hill Rd., Petaluma, 800/292-6001 or cheesefactory@marinfrenchcheese.com *Spring Hill Jersey Cheese, 4235 Spring Hill Rd., Petaluma, 707/762-3446 or springhillcheese@yahoo.com