McGrath Cheese Company

McGrath Cheese Company is an artisan producer located in New York’s Hudson Valley. We hand craft every batch of cheese using only the best milk available to us from small local dairies. We place the highest value in the relationships we have with our farmers as they are the backbone to our cheese's success. The craft of making artisan cheese is an age old tradition that we strive to pay homage to with every batch we make.

Cheese Maker Colin McGrath is the founder of McGrath Cheese Company. He began his career in the food industry at the young age of 15.  Colin's work in restaurants fed his passion for food and led him to  get his degree from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY.   Working in the food industry then led Colin down a different path, as he fell in love with the art, science, and tradition of making cheese.  Colin has developed an award-winning line of cow and goat’s milk cheeses. These cheeses have been nationally recognized over a dozen times. Some of his proudest recognitions include: 1st place in the United States Championship Cheese awards, 2 Good Food Awards, 1st place in The New York State Fair Dairy Competition,  Multiple 1st places in the American Cheese Society Annual Competition, and 3rd Best in Show at The American Cheese Society Annual Competition.  Colin has now turned his dream into reality by founding McGrath Cheese Company. Knowing that high quality milk is the backbone of the cheeses he creates;  he is committed to building good relationships with local farmers to obtain the best, local milk available. Colin lives in the Hudson Valley of New York with his wife and two children.

Mel is a lifelong food lover; cheese being at the top of her list! Mel has been making cheese since 2010; just a few short weeks after graduating high school. In that time, she has made 500,000 pounds of cheese with her own two hands! Mel has been recognized many times over for her work on award winning cheeses. Her passion of cheese and involvement in every batch makes sales easy and something she enjoys doing. She is well-known by customers due to her enthusiasm and passion for the product from start to finish. You can find her at the farmers markets every weekend slinging cheese, teaching cheese and wine pairing classes at the local vineyards and making cheese boards for upwards of 150 people for public and private events. Melissa and her husband live in New York’s Hudson Valley in a 200 year old school house. When Mel isn’t elbow deep in cheese curds, she loves reading, dancing and traveling around the world! 

Left to Right

Colin McGrath, Colin McGrath, Mel Hunter, Charlie Hunter, Mikey McGrath, Liz McGrath