The name is up, and liquor board notices are posted. I didn't see a "will open" sign, though.

woops! Cowgirl Creamery

I work right around the corner from the store, and can report that the Cowgirl sign has been hanging in the window for the past three to four weeks. There isn't too much activity around the building however as many of the construction crews are either doing the final detail work on the new buildings across the street, or the building going up next door.

Where?

Is this related to Cowgirl Creamery???

Yikes. The rent has gotta be horrendous, but this means that cheese plates in the hood should get better...

Unfortunately I am sure we will see that in the price of the cheese.

I stopped by and peeked in about two weeks ago....I'm not a construction expert by any means but it seemed like they had a long way to go before any cheese would be sold

On a side note, at last night's Steve Jenkins cheese tasting, somebody from the audience asked his opinion of Cowgirl Creamery, and for any comments on their upcoming retail store here. Never one to hold back an opinion (nor miss an opportunity to plug Fairway Markets), he thought their cheeses were pretty good but very overpriced - a figure of $28/lb retail was mentioned.

I'll agree their cheeses tend to be overpriced, but some of them are quite good. Just buy in small quantities.

Still, overall, I'll make the trek to Cheesetique in Arlington. I often combine a trip there to that Dairy/ice cream place up the street from it, as well as stops at Arrowine and the Crisp & Juicy near Arrowine. URP

Mt. Tam is also available at the Organic Butcher in McLean.

Word on the street is that Arrowine's Katie is leaving and heading over there. Hopefull Aldo is not next. Personally I do most of my weekly buying at Arrow, but will venture over to Cheesetique to support their business, but that is about it. I find that there are more unique finds at Arrow then tique, just my opinion. I will see what Cowgirl has to offer when it opens.

I was just gifted with a $100 gift card to the (eventual) store. What's a gal to do?

BTW, the gifter was informed on purchase of said gift card that the store would be open in June. Woohoo!!

From CG's June newsletter:

"The Doors are Opening in DC!
Mark your calendars for the week of June 12th! The doors of our new shop at 919 F Street NW in Washington, D.C. will be opening and we can't wait to welcome you in. As you enter the door, come prepared to enjoy the sight, the aroma and the taste of farmstead and artisan cheeses. It is all part of the experience in exploring the world of handcrafted cheese and discovering new favorites. Lynne Kirchner, our shop manager, and her staff will be ready to help you!"

And this may have been mentioned before:

"In addition to selling the farmstead and artisan cheeses that Cowgirl Creamery has become known for, the shop will also be selling charcuterie, local breads and wines. Come visit us!"

Local breads?

Who's baking the bread?

Sooooooo? Did it open as planned? Who's been? How is it? I need to get my cheese on!

A friend of mine stopped by last week and they told her they would be opening today (June 13) I have not gotten a report as to whether they are open but she told me she walked by yesterday and it looked like they might be ready for business.

Ron, thanks, and welcome to DR.com.

I just called, and they're opening today at 1. Usually they'll open at 10am, but since today's their first day, they're still getting things ready.

Was just there. They have an excellent sampler bag for sale and many cheeses available. The McEnvoy olive oil which I just tasted for the first time in SF about 2 months ago and I think it is one of the best olive oils I've ever had, kind of grassy and very full of flavor.
Cowgirl is still shaking out a bit with it being the first day and all, but everyone is really nice and helpful.

I bought a cake of Cowgirl Creamery's Red Hawk at Cheestique once. I left it set out on the dining room table to ripen and went away for a few hours. When i returned, the whole house stunk. But, my kids wolfed it down.

Cowgirl Creamery. Boy, there's lots to say. Stopped by this afternoon. Let's start with a brief on what the place looks like.

It's very white. Very, very white. Counters, walls, registers, wall fridges, the "lab coats" worn by the help (and when I was there, all of the customers!) Three "rooms" to the place. You come in and there's the register on your right, along with some cheeses cut up for you to taste. Today it was the Mount Tam triple creme and the St. Pat, which is CC's spring cheese, wrapped in nettles. (Both are relatively young cheeses, ergo pasteurized milk. The Mt. Tam is fresh and clean tasting but the St. Pat is much better to my taste, with a tangy, vegetal essence permeating thanks to the nettle wrapping.) Behind the counter are some shelves including empty bottles that will eventually be filled with fresh McEvoy olive oil from CA. Also on the counter are a handful of open breads (baguette price is 2.25, although I didn't ask where it was from) and packaged crackers.

To your left in this first "room" near the entry is a cooler with beverages and a small open fridge holding some cheese. They had some prefilled bags specially packed for the opening with a chunk of Point Reyes Blue, Mt. Tam and St. George, a CA cheese made in a Portuguese style (a longer aging on this one concentrates more flavor out of it), and a CC-branded cheese spreader. These were sold for $20 each.

Moving on to the middle "room" it was pretty empty, but am told it will soon be filled with wines. Although I can't say for sure, it would probably be a good bet that most of them will come from northern CA. The treasures were in the last room. Many more cheeses to choose from in one section. A self-serve fridge in another with some cheeses (including some beautiful open pieces of Constant Bliss from Jasper Hill sitting in a little mini-crate. I dare you to leave without one!) and cultured butter and the like. Another corner deli-case holds three kinds of olives and fresh cheeses. In the back there's some offices (with very white walls) and a big walk-in that I wasn't allowed to visit even though I asked nicely.

Ok. The product. As for variety of cheese, for the time being there's much, much more at Cheesetique and Arrowine. Clearly that's going to change as more stock comes in. You have got to. Repeat, GOT TO, try the fresh cheeses. There are sheep milk and cow milk ricottas. They were the finest ricotta cheeses I have ever tasted. Fresh (duh!), tangy, soft, silky, dairy. Very dry, too. No extra whey hanging out in there that I could see. They tasted fresh from the farm. Hell, they tasted like you were eating them on the farm. I'm a huge fan of Paul Stephan's Blue Ridge Dairy ricotta that I get at the Dupont Market, but holy shit, these were miles away better. And they're only slightly more expensive than Blue Ridge. (I think they're $6.75/lb at CC). Yes, I know that Blue Ridge gets the milk from local cows but.....wow. And if that's not enough, you gotta try the mascarpone and the cultured cottage cheese.

The help. Katie from Arrowine is, indeed, Asst. Mgr. and cheesemonger at CC. (She says she was saddened to leave Arrowine). For those of you who met Katie at Arrowine, she knows her stuff. Not only trained with classes at Artisanal in NY but working all those hours with Aldo the Cheese God will help, too. Also to be working at CC is Pablo, cheesemaker from Firefly Farms in Garrett County, MD. You may know Pablo from when he staffs the Firefly booth at the Dupont Market. He'll be working at CC on Saturdays only. (Perhaps only Saturday mornings. I can't recall).

So, having a commercial cheesemaker on staff clearly makes CC distinctive from our friends at Cheesetique and Arrowine. Another difference is (and I hope I am both, correct in this and recalling properly what Katie told me) that CC will be getting cheeses sent direct from France to the store from an affineur who will personally select the cheeses.

Now, all of these things are nice. And these are good cheeses that they have. And they seem well cared for. And, knowing Katie and Pablo, they've clearly got a good staff. But here's the thing. It's not a neighborhood cheese store. CC looks and feels sterile. Cheesetique is Cheesetique not only because it provides you with great, well-tended cheeses served to you by a knowledgable staff. But Cheesetique is Cheesetique because it has Jill Erber's personality. The store is special because it has Jill and she's local, and it's her store and you can see it (and her with those cute little posters!) all over. That personality is entirely absent from CC. Cheesetique is your neighborhood cheese store. CC is not. CC is convenient, and in a pricey part of town, that's for sure. And some of the cheese prices reflect that (but not all).

And while I don't know if CC is planning this, Jill does some great cheese tasting classes. And those also reflect her personality and love for her product. We'll just have to see if that comes from CC, too. I think there's definitely room for all these cheese shops in the area and I can only hope it will bring more love for cheese to the community. Check out CC (and taste those fresh cheeses!), but don't neglect the shops owned by your neighbors. It's not just product and price, it's personality, too.

Yes, Aldo the "Cheese God" is still at Arrowine. He misses Katie and wishes she would CALL HIM!

To be fair, I believe Jill did spend a year raising dairy livestock and doing some commercial cheesemaking in preparation for opening Cheesetique. I'm not saying that it's comparable to Pablo's background, but some credit is due.

I was there today-I saw signs in front of the breads saying they're from Breadline.

The bread is indeed from Breadline. Picked up some amazing cheeses yesterday including the Mt Tam, some Oregonzola (which, despite the gimmicky name, was quite good), and a cheese I had never encountered before -- a Tome de Recollets, which has a rind washed with Sauternes and is encrusted in herbs and spices.

What a great addition to the area!

I highly encourage one and all to taste the Fougerus. And then I dare you to leave without some.

Okay this place is great and could lead to a serious weight problem. I managed to go in without making a purchase or tasting a thing as I was on my way to a lunch meeting. Due to time constraints didn't get back... but I did sign up for a French Aged Goat Cheese tasting being held on June 30. There are 3 times being offered, 4 p.m. 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. 15 people each.

I love goat cheese and aged goat cheese intrigues me... so I signed up for the 5 p.m. tasting.

Hello cheese loveers...

Many of you may know me from Komi, but if you come in to Cowgirl, you may see me there as well! I just wanted to let y'all know that the shop is open and busy, and as NCPinDCmentioned, there are many events planned for the near future. We are currently waiting for our liquor license, but we should have a good selection of wines by the end of august or beginning of september. In regards to the discussion of supporting your neighborhood cheese shop, I love Cheesetique and Arrowine, but i also think its nice to have something in the downtown area for those of us who live or work close by. Cowgirl is originally based in N. Cali, but this is the only shop other than the original, so its no huge corporation. Both of the owners (Sue Conley and Peggy Smith) were born and raised in the DC area as well, so this is a kind of homecoming for them.

I'm only there part-time, but please say hi if you stop in. And if you have any other questions about the shop, ask away! Although, at this point, Katie may be able to answer them better than I can

Carolyn

Its a great store and a welcome addition to the area.....much as I love Cheesetique, its simply not convenient for me to go there on a regular basis....they also seem to have an extensive selection of Califonian cheeses I haven't seen/heard of before.....I stopped in today and picked up a few bits and pieces and had a nice chat with one of the delightful staff members whose name I neglected to ask.....I picked up a Pleasant Ridge Reserve.....a nutty, almost cheddary hard cheese from Wisconsin......Camellia, a really interesting goat bried/camembert...only about an 1.5 cms thick.....with the cheese (not the rind) almost a delicate shade of pink!.....a Fougerous from France....another soft cheese....pungent, earthy....and half a Cowgirl Red Hawk

My wife stopped by there yesterday after hitting the Farmer's Market nearby (what is that market called, the Penn Quarter??).

Here's what she said over in her foodie zone--


We dined on some really excellent farmer's market bread, some salad picked just minutes before from our garden, and three cheeses (Mimolette, Humboldt Fog and Wabash Cannonball) for dinner. Perfect quick no-cooking dinner for a hot summer night.

Does anyone know the hours and if they are open 7 days a week?

They're open Tuesday through Saturday... if I remember correctly they open at 10am, but I'm not sure when they close.

Oh, my! I threw a wine and cheese get-together for some of my neighbors this afternoon (between rain storms). The Guest of Honor was the sister of an elderly neighbor who fell earlier this year and broke several bones, was hospitilized for a lengthy period, and was in rehab for quite awhile. The sister came from a small village in Germany to help my neighbor get back up to snuff. An absolutely lovely woman. Sorry all of you couldn't meet her. She is going back to her home tomorrow morning.

I went to Cowgirl Friday afternoon, since I wasn't sure they would be open on Saturday. I took a little walk around the place and was immediately overwhelmed by the variety of things on offer. No matter. Some nice young woman asked me "Are you ready?" I said "No Way. I need help." I told her what was up and that I wanted the "Mt. Tam" for sentimental reasons. Mt. Tamalpias is a hill in Marin County and when we lived at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge (across from San Francisco), my brother spent his freshman year in high school at Tamalpias High.

I was given a taste of everything I was considering. I wussed out and didn't go for any of the stinky cheeses. At the party, one of my very favorite people in the entire world told my that she LOVED stinky cheese. I will certainly keep that in mind.

EVERYBODY raved about the cheese. Who knew? I also picked up some olives (which were entirely scarfed up, even though they weren't pitted), and a couple of kinds of preserves.

I hope, hope, hope they will be able to keep up this level of service. A completely knowledgeable staff, able and willing to help the "ignorati" of which I am one. A short walk from the end of the line for the 42 bus and right next door to Central Liquors.

If there is ANY doubt about the renaissance of downtown DC, this place should put it all to rest. (Says someone who has envied those of you who could actually get to Cheesetique. I believe there is room for all these dedicated cheese people.)

Right now Cowgirl is open Tues-Fri 10-8, and Sat 9-6.
The plan is to be open 7 days a week after Labor Day, so we'll see.

Sighing a happy sigh. There is half of a Red Hawk and a slice of Fougerus sitting in front of me waiting to top the sea salt and olive oil crackers I bought. The Fougerus is my idea of the perfect runny, stinky, creamy, yummy cheese. It has a strong but not overpowering flavor with a second burst of flavor as it hits the back of the tounge. The crackers are fine-nothing special and probably not worth the $6.00 I paid for them, even if they are organic. But they are a good vessel for the cheese.

I have to agree with crescentfresh-it's great to have in the area but has a sterile, almost institutional feel to it. Maybe it's because they are still getting their sea legs. And I wish they would keep track of what I am buying the way Jill does. But it is a great resource to have downtown and their selection is amazing. I will have to choose between my waistline and working through the selection.

I was very impressed by the amount of staff they had working. At 4pm on a Tuesday there were 7 people working. In the 20 minutes we were there we interacted with 5 different people. One of the owners was there and was increadibly helpful. She seemed to enjoy watching us discover her treasures without giving us a hard sell. She also cut me the perfect amount of the Fougerus. I am enjoying it by myself and the slice is just enough to feel a bit indulgent without adding too much to my waistline. I also love that they had the Red Hawk in half sizes as well. I wish the stinging nettle and Mt. Tam were available that way too.

All in all it's a welcome addition to the area. Thier location is brilliant from a tourist point of view. If I was visiting DC I would want to check it out and considering it's right near Penn Quarter and Chinatown one could easily make a full foodie afternoon/evening within a few blocks. Carolyn I'm sorry I missed you but now I have another excuse to fill my days with another visit!

You might want to check back with them - I'm sure they had halves of Mt. Tam when we were in on Saturday.

Hannah's right, I got half sizes of both of those last week. Yum!

Just picked up a round of Mt. Tam, a half pound of fromage blanc, and a small wedge of Sottocenere, which is a must-try.

I quite liked the sterile environment. The staff were friendly, generous, and helpful.

Without question, the best cheese store within walking distance

Got some mimolette, clisson, a cool aged cheddar (forgot the name) and a nice manchego there yesterday. A nice clean shop with very helpful and attentive staff.

Wandered to the liquor store next door to browse their wines and left shaking my head at their pricing (but I guess their rent must be sky high these days).

i left shaking my head about the selection. are the cowgirls expected to start rolling in their wines anytime soon?

The two Katie's hooked me up with some mouthwatering cheeses this afternoon that I am eager to sample over the course of the weekend........heres the haul

Fromage de Meaux.......1/2 a pound of oozing, pungent buttery goodness
Big Woods Blue, from Minnesota....I'm always looking for new and distinct blues and this one seems promising, firm, but still moist in texture, nice sharp taste
Penache.......a sheeps milk cheese from the Pyrenees.....mild tasting but a depth to the taste that lingers nicely
Pau, , goats cheese from Spain....rich, creamy
Camellia, from Redwood Hill Farm in CA - this was the one repeat purchase from my last trip there

I love that Pau and am regretting not buying some during my visit today. After tasting a few cheeses, courtesy of the delightful Carolyn, I walked away with some Cabrales and a round of Mt. Tam. I didn't find the space sterile at all; I liked it a lot.

So, here's the report on what I bought --

manchego (I forget the exact name and I tossed the wrapper!), good but not great
clisson, mild, interesting, but overpowered by the other cheeses
mimolette, a personal favorite and tonight did not disappoint
montgomery cheddar...WOW!

an interesting lesson in how important ripeness and being able to taste a cheese is.......llast time I had the Camellia it was cut from a large wheel and just delicious.....because it was so good I picked up a smaller individually wrapped wheel and it just was not as good as before....I think it needed to be aged more and it had none of the taste of the previous one.....all the others (which I had tasted in-store) were excellent having survived the detour to Corduroy (thanks for putting them in a fridge guys!) and tthe metro ride home

Cowgirl is also a great addition to the lunch options for those of us who work in the area. They have two kinds of sandwiches every day (one veg, one meat), and you can get out of there with a sandwich and drink for less than you'd pay at Cosi. (And it goes without saying, the quality's about a thousand times better at Cowgirl!)

Only thing is, I've stopped in for a late lunch a couple of times and found that they'd run out of sandwiches by 2pm or so. But that problem is easily solved by just buying some cheese and bread and making the sandwich back at the office myself...

Update: they are still planning on opening 7 days a week after Labor day.

Excellent news. I finally made it there last week and enjoyed the heck out of some Red Hawk, St. Pat, membrillo, almonds, and baguette. Another day when I have more time I'll mingle and taste, but for those in a hurry, you can grab prepackaged stuff up front.

Great place. Stopped by yesterday on the way to see the a movie at the E street theater, and walked out with their special of the day: 1 round of Mt. Tam, 1/2 a round of St. Pat and a wedge of Carmody, a cow's milk cheese from Bellwether Farms in California for $20, in addition to a round of their Red Hawk. They had samples of a delicious Salumi Toscana and McEvoy olive oil out. I like how they also carry local cheeses like Firefly and Blue Ridge Creamery. Their cheese selection is indeed impressive. Other non-cheese products like jams, chutneys, honey, crackers, etc., are also featured.

It's too bad there's so much construction going on around there. If you weren't looking for the place or weren't in the know, it would be difficult to find. They said business has been ok. Spread the word so that more people check it out and it stays in business! Also, St. Pat is their spring/summer cheese and won't be available for much longer as they bring in their fall cheese, so pick one up soon if you like it. It's my favorite - I really like the herby flavor imparted by the nettles.

Gotta go eat some cheese for dinner.

Yeah, but.....

Perhaps if there was more parking for people. Perhaps if they were open on Sundays when parking is more plentiful. Perhaps if they were open on Mondays when there are plenty of people working in nearby offices. There's no "one stop shopping" going on around Cowgirl. If they're not open when people are in the neighborhood, or can't provide a place to park for someone wanting to hit that destination......

If they do open up 7 days after Labor Day, I can only hope it will make a positive difference.

In case you missed it:

Cowgirl Creamery on All Things Considered (NPR)

Is this something that they import or make in-house?