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Finding Holland beautiful, but too crowded and offering too few opportunities, the young Bulk family decided to immigrate to the U.S. in 1980 in search of new opportunities. Since Walter Bulk had worked with his father in the Netherlands raising sugar beets, potatoes, wheat and grass seed, he quickly found a similar job in the farming community of Marysville, California near Sacramento.
Prize-Winning Gouda
Soon after settling down in Marysville, Walter was unhappy to see that the price of
Gouda
cheese imported into the U.S. from his native country was surprisingly high. He was he
challenged by the idea of making this Dutch cheese in the U.S., at a cheaper price.
Although his family in Holland was not engaged in commercial cheese production, his
maternal grandmother made cheese at home so he grew up in a cheese-making environment.
Using recipes he obtained from family and friends in Holland, he experimented for about a
year and found that he was able to produce a Gouda that was not only identical in flavor
to the cheese made in Holland, but that his production costs would enable him to sell his
cheese for only 50% of the price of the imported version. That propelled Walter and his
wife Lenneke to establish Bulk Farms in Escalon, a small town east of Modesto, where they
into commercial production in 1983. In 1984, only a year after becoming cheese makers, the
Bulks entered their Gouda cheese into a competition in Holland and won second prize!
They have also won 2 gold medals at the Sacramento State Fair with their new
garlic basil flavored Gouda and Aged Gouda and won First Prize at the American
Cheese Society in 1999 in the International Cheese category with their mild
Gouda.
Gouda and Beyond
Today, under the Oakdale Cheese Company label, a company that the Bulks started in
1995, Walter produces 1,500 lbs. of Gouda in 10 lb. wheels and 350 lbs. of quark
each week. The Bulks are one of 3 or 4 Gouda makers in the U.S. and one of 3
quark makers. Today they produce 6 types of flavored Gouda (garlic, basil
garlic, garden herbs, smoked, cumin and jalapeno pepper) in addition tot the
traditional mild and aged varieties.
About half of his output is sold at farmers' markets in the Bay Area (he participates in 12 throughout the year) and the other half is sold in his retail shop in Oakdale on Highway 120, which the Bulks opened in 1995. The shop is strongly reminiscent of the Bulk family's Dutch heritage, including a full-sized mannequin in traditional Dutch dress, wooden shoes and Dutch baked goods for sale. The shop is open every day from 9:00 am - 6:00 pm.
Cheese Making
Walter makes cheese-making sound like a simple, straightforward process:
To make Gouda |
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To make Quark |
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What is Quark?
It's best described as a soft and fresh, low-fat cheese with a slightly sour flavor and
slightly grainy texture. Quark is common throughout Europe where it's most often used as a
baker's cheese, but it can also be used as a cheese spread on toast and as a low-fat
alternative to cream cheese. For a great recipe using quark see Gabi's Fruit Tarte (Der Kuchen von
"Gabi").
Vital Statistics
Serving size: ¼ cup (30 g.) |
Cholesterol: 0 mg. Carbohydrate: 1 g. Protein: 3 g. |
Limited Distribution
You'll find Oakdale Cheese products in specialty stores, at their Oakdale shop on Highway 120
or at one of the Bay Area's farmers'
markets. They're at the San Francisco Ferry Plaza Farmers' Market every Saturday
year-round. They will also accept mail orders at the address listed above.
For more information visit the Oakdale Cheese website at http://www.oakdalecheese.com.
August 1996 (updated March 2000)
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