Visiting Main Street's celebrated Bleu Fox Cheese Shop
Certified with a rare and distinctive expertise in cheese, Southside’s Bleu Fox packs a world of knowledge with local focus into their independently run shop on East Main Street in the Southside.
“It’s almost like a little European street where you can walk down the sidewalk and get your chunk of cheese and your locally roasted coffee and your freshly baked baguette and some freshly ground meat and cuts,” says bonafide cheesemonger Jesse Watlington, who co-owns Bleu Fox with his wife Brittany.
Approaching their store’s first anniversary in November, it’s no small feat to have turned a family passion into a specialty food market that offers more than 60 varieties of local, regional, and international cut-to-order cheeses as well as garnishing touches such as jams and honeys. Jesse hails from the inaugural American Cheese Society, class of 2012 where he earned the title of Certified Cheese Professional (CCP).
An elite group, there are currently just over 900 CCPs in the U.S. For eligibility, an individual must satisfy a minimum of 4,000 hours of experience within six years in addition to successful completion of a rigorous exam that evaluates a range of knowledge and skills from pasture to palate.
“The exam covers literally every aspect of cheese from when a baby cow is born to cheese is on your table with a glass of wine or a beer,” says Jesse. “But it also goes into a lot of the science of cheese. The cultures used, the bacteria used, and what temperature ranges are best for growth of different cultures and bacteria that are commonly used in the cheese world.
"It’s kind of crazy how much work and science goes into the finished product of a wheel of cheese.”While Jesse and his co-workers can wax philosophical on the circle of life in cheese (like the backstory on Malvarosa, a cheese they carry that’s made by one man in the world as an effort to save the nearly extinct Guirra sheep), they also keep it close to home.
Named after Jesse and Brittany’s two young children, Amelia Bleu and Henry Fox, the team encourages customers to “try before you buy” and endeavors to stock the shelves with as many locally and regionally made cheeses, beers, pickles, and charcuterie to suit the seasons and taste buds.
“Although we do have a national brand of crackers, they are the best crackers for cheese,” says Jesse. “Not everything is made by one man living up in the mountains.”
“It’s important to support your neighbors,” says co-monger Sam Weathers, CCP. “If we can find a local product that has something to do with what we’re doing, then we’re going to carry it. In my mind, that’s the way it should be. If your neighbors are making good stuff, you want to show that off and you want to build those relationships. It’s good for the entire community when it all comes together.”
And cheese brings smiles, it’s proven.
“No matter what flavor profile you personally enjoy there is a cheese to match it,” Jesse says. “Plus aged cheese has Tyrosine, which is one of the building blocks for L Dopa, an amino acid that literally, chemically makes you happy. Maybe that’s why once you get deep into the cheese world, maybe we’re all just addicts.”