Martha and Tom Blatchford would probably agree that their 26 years of marriage has certainly been an adventure, and now with their new farm operation, they’ve begun an entirely new chapter. Lucky for us, it’s one that the Blatchfords are now ready to share with the public – in more ways than one.
Martha & Tom’s Farm is a dairy farm located some 80 miles west of St. Louis city in Owensville, Mo., in German wine country. The Blatchfords tend a herd of 18 pasture-raised, grass-fed Jersey cows, and they’re using their milk to make cheese. Their dairy operation recently became licensed, which means their cheese brand, Cool Cow Cheese, is now for sale.
Tom Blatchford is currently making: cheese curds, Gouda, Edam, Camembert and Queso Blanco, which is flavored with a dry rub from famed Memphis barbecue joint Rendezvous. “My cheeses are pale yellow, but I don’t add any coloring. I don’t add anything besides the milk, rennet and cheese culture,” he said of his cheese-making process. “The milk has to talk to you. You have to listen to what the milk says,” said Blatchford, who learned the trade from artisan cheesemakers in Salem, Ore., New Hampshire, Mobile, Ala., and at Mississippi State University. Cool Cow Cheese is currently only sold at the farm, but Blatchford hopes to make contact with area restaurants and specialty food shops in the months ahead.
Raising cows and making cheese are just part of the action on the farm that the Blatchfords purchased in April 2011. In readying the dairy operation, they renovated a house on the property that dated back to 1871, turning it into a post-and-beam barn. The dairy processing area is on the first floor; upstairs is a 3,000-square-foot hay-loft area with four guest rooms, aka, the bed and breakfast.
By offering an enhanced B&B experience at their farm, the Blatchfords have jumped into the agri-tourism industry. Want to be part of the cheese-making process? Drive the Blatchfords’ team of Belgian horses? Do some hands-on alpaca ranching at the neighbors’ house down the road? All this – and more – can be yours. Who knew that emptying your bucket list was just a 90-minute drive from home.
This article appears in April 2013.