Vendor Turns Heads at World Cheese Awards

Bloomsdale cheese from artisan farmstead dairy farm Baetje Farms beat out 2,700 cheeses from 35 countries to become one of the top 16 cheeses in the world.

Owners Steve and Veronica Baetje took Bloomsdale and several other cheeses to the World Cheese Awards 2011 in Birmingham, United Kingdom, where they won a super gold award, four silvers and a bronze for their artisan cheeses, according to Feast Magazine.

Of the 50 super gold winners, judges selected 16—including Baetje's Bloomsdale—as top in the world.

The Baetje's St. Genevieve farm sells its cheeses at the Webster Groves Farmers Market, which sent a big "off-season congratulations" to the farmers on its Facebook page.

The Baetjes wake up at 3 a.m. every morning to milk their 53 goats and make cheese, according to their website.

(Correction: This article previously stated the Kirkwood Farmers Market also sold Baetje cheese. The market is a former vendor.)