Published: October 16, 2009 07:27 am      

Nothing cheesy about Hardesty cheese maker

HARDESTY - Whether it was through farming or ranching, Russell Gift has spent his entire life connected to agriculture. 

His appreciation for  Oklahoma’s fertile ground has made him the fine cheese maker that he is today. 

From basic cheddar to speciality cheeses, like his spicy fiesta blend, chances are Gift has made it. 

“We do as much as possible to make a high quality product.  We use low heat pasteurization and try to make it the same as it was 100 years ago.  It’s handmade artisan cheese, not a commercial cheese.  We make small batches that allow us to put in more care.  Our focus is more on the quality of cheese not the quantity,” Gift said.

Gift began making cheese as a hobby when he was looking for a way to utilize extra goat milk being produced on his farm.  Today, he and his wife Denise are the owners of Hardesty Cheese and produce 28 varieties of handmade all natural cheese.  The pair has shared their passion for cheese with others since they bought the company from a friend in March of 2005.

“Our cheese is the freshest because we pick up milk daily from the dairy.  We use only milk from cows that are free of antibiotics, steroids, hormones, BST and animal byproducts,” Gift said.

The artisan cheeses are generally made from cows and goats milk. 

But Gift is always experimenting with different blends, and recently purchased water buffalos.  He said he will use the rich buffalo milk to make original buffalo mozzarella, a cheese that originates from Italy.

“The water buffalo is a very unique animal in itself in that it produces such a high quality meat and the milk is much higher in protein, fat and minerals than cow’s milk,” he said.

Gift produces between 1,200 and 1,500 pounds of cheese a week at his facility in Beaver County.  He ships his product all over the U.S. and sells his cheese at markets in many Northwest Oklahoma towns including Woodward, Seiling, Enid, Guymon, Fairview and many more.  You can also find his cheese by visiting his website www.hardestycheese.com.

This weekend Gift will showcase his cheese at the K-101 Fall-A-Days.

“People can come by and sample many of our cheeses, and we will have about 12 varieties that people can buy. We will be set up by the wineries and will sell cheese and cracker packages to compliment it,” Gift said.