Local cheeses win state awards

“Fog in Eggemoggin,” a creamy cheese from Yellow Birch Farm, was among two award-winners from the Deer Isle farm. Photo by Steele Hays.

By Jenna Lookner

Deer Isle’s Yellow Birch Farm recently won two awards in the highly competitive 2025 Maine State Cheese Competition, one for its “Fog in Eggemoggin” cheese and another for its “Sundried Tomato and Sumac” cheese. Both varieties are made from goats’ milk by Missy Greene, the co-owner and operator of Yellow Birch Farm. The awards were announced September 15th. 

“I feel very honored,” Greene said in a telephone interview. “You don’t really do it to win, it’s more about, ‘How does my product compare with other products out there?’ It gives you an incentive to keep on going. It’s a great boost to your morale.” 

Fog in Eggemoggin won third place in the “bloomy rind” cheese category, which includes cheeses like brie and camembert.  All cheeses in this category have a velvety white rind.  The sundried tomato and sumac won second place in the flavored cheese category. 

Greene has been making goat cheese for 19 years and currently has a herd of 20 goats, all of which must be milked daily.  Each summer, she and her husband, Eric Ziner, have interns helping them run the farm and assisting with the milking, but in other seasons the couple does it themselves. As the growing season winds down, Greene “dries off” many of the goats in her herd to make the work more manageable. 

Fog in Eggemoggin has been one of Greene’s most popular cheeses, so much so that she has never had enough in supply to enter it in the state cheese competition. But this year she entered the competition, and was thrilled to win third place, she said. 

The farm’s cheeses are available–while supplies last–from the Yellow Birch Farm store in Deer Isle.  Hours and days of operation are posted on their website at www.yellowbirchfarm.com