The tiny unincorporated town of Dixon Springs, Tenn., about 40 miles northeast of Nashville, sprang into the national limelight about three years ago as the home of the Great Tennessee Pot Cave. This natural limestone cave, 100 feet-by-500-feet with 20-foot ceilings, had been outfitted by an enterprising marijuana grower to the tune of a quarter of a million dollars.
When the grower was arrested, his cave was put up for auction, and Wisconsin cheesemaker Roth Kase bought it. The company has plans to work with local producers of of cow's, sheep's, and goat's milk and will use the temperature-controlled and humidity-controlled cave as a place to cure cheese.
Tennessee has a few cheesemakers already and, of course, welcomes Roth Kase, but it may be a while before we're in Wisconsin's league. A quick glance at Jeanette Hurt's new book, The Cheese of Wisconsin: A Culinary Travel Guide (The Countryman Press, 2008, $19.95) turns up dozens of cheesemakers in the state. She provides a list of facilities that welcome visitors and includes a map showing producer locations — all of which have us dreaming of a thriving cheese-making industry and artisans' shops to tour close to home.
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