Whiz-Kid Cheese

 

Sixteen-year-old cheesemaker Avery Jones has another hit on her hands. Last year, the California teenager took a top award at the cheese plate with dish Society competition for Aries , her first entry. Her latest debut, a bloomy-rind sheep cheese called Leo, looks destined for a bright future, too. As if these whiz-kid achievements weren’t enough to impress, Avery recently presented a check for $2,200—five percent of her sales—to AmpSurf, a nonprofit with personal meaning for her. cheese plate with dish

 

Not to diminish Avery’s accomplishments in any way, but she does have a good mentor: her dad, Reggie Jones, owns Central Coast Creamery in Paso Robles, and there’s probably not a box big enough to hold all his cheese awards. Avery’s brand is Shooting Star Creamery—shooting for the stars being sort of a Jones family motto—and although her cheeses are produced in her dad’s plant, the recipes are her own.

So far, she makes exclusively sheep cheese, with purchased milk from a dairy near Modesto. “Very few creameries in the western U.S. produce 100 percent sheep’s milk cheese, so there was a gap in the market,” says Avery, sounding like she inherited some of her dad’s business smarts, too.

At just under two pounds, Leo resembles a large, thick Camembert, with aromas of button mushroom and crème fraiche. The texture is luscious, super silky, and the salting is just right. The rind is thin and not remotely ammoniated but a bit crusty, not as tender as I might like. I found myself cutting it away, which I almost never do on a bloomy-rind cheese.

Avery chose Ampsurf as her preferred charity after learning more about her family’s long tradition of military service. Her great-grandfather served in the First World War and her grandfather in the Second. “I got interested in their stories,” says Avery. “My great-grandfather had PTSD when he came back, so we started looking at veterans’ charities. Ampsurf helps vets and amputees by teaching them how to surf.”

Avery Jones

A high-school senior with college plans, Avery says she expects to keep the creamery going but probably with less hands-on involvement. “We’re not sure how we’re going to transition but we’ll figure that out,” says Reggie. “Avery’s number-one job next year is going to college.”

You can purchase Leo, whole or quartered, on the Central Coast Creamery website. Also look for it at these retail stores.