Essentials: Rush Creek Reserve, Dodgeville, Wisconsin
Are you on a waitlist?
Every year, cheese shops all over the United States get a holiday gift from Dodgeville, Wisconsin. Many cheesemongers take reservations for Uplands Creamery’s creamy, spoonable Rush Creek Reserve. A taste of place and season with a cult following, it’s the product of rich, hay-fed fall milk from the cows that graze the creamery’s 300 acres in Wisconsin’s Driftless Region, made only in September and November. It’s an ideal holiday centerpiece, with a decadent, intensely savory flavor rounded out by evergreen notes from a spruce-bark wrapper. To serve it, let it warm to room temperature and then peel off the top. You can pair it with bread and crackers, but don’t be surprised when your guests start eating it by the spoonful. And if you aren’t already on a Rush Creek waitlist, you can still order the cheese directly from Uplands until December 20. —Amy Cavanaugh
Amy Cavanaugh is the dining editor at Chicago magazine. A native New Englander, she’s lived in Chicago for a decade and loves venturing around the Midwest to eat and drink. Follow along on Instagram @AmyCavanaugh.
Kevin Necessary is a freelance illustrator and editorial cartoonist. He is currently the editorial cartoonist for The Cincinnati Enquirer. His cartoons are syndicated by GoComics, and his cartoons have been published in a variety of publications such as The Week and Politico. A Cincinnati native, Kevin will fight to the death defending Cincinnati chili. He lives with his wife, Julie, and three cats, Huckleberry, Grayson, and Bonnie.