Couple pursues value-added dreams

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Travis and Amy Forgues say they had early dreams of owning a value-added farm. The couple in 2023 purchased Hidden Springs Creamery near Westby, Wisconsin. There they milk sheep to make a growing variety of sheep-milk cheese products.

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Travis and Amy Forgues have two flocks of sheep, enabling them to milk year-round. The flocks are primarily composed of Lacaune sheep; the breed originated in southern France.

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Amy Forgue scoops curd at Hidden Springs Creamery. Consistency and cleanliness are key to cheesemaking, she says.

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Lavender and Honey are among the flavors of Hidden Springs Creamery鈥檚 Driftless line of spreadable sheep-milk cheese.

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Coulee ricotta recently was added to Hidden Springs Creamery鈥檚 line of sheep-milk products. Ricotta isn鈥檛 a cheese but rather a dairy product similar to sour cream, Amy Forgues says.

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Whey from Hidden Springs Creamery is used in the production of Birch Point Distillery鈥檚 vodka and gin. It鈥檚 a new market for the creamery.

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Julie and Tony Hook buy sheep milk from Hidden Springs Creamery to make blue cheese. Hook鈥檚 Cheese of Mineral Point, Wisconsin, has won several national and international cheese contests.

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Staci and Scott Kring co-own Birch Point Distillery, which uses whey to produce spirits such as gin and vodka.

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Lynn Grooms For Agri-View

WESTBY, Wis. 鈥� Amy and Travis Forgues had years of marketing, sales, farming and cheesemaking experience when in 2023 they purchased Hidden Springs Creamery of Westby. But that didn鈥檛 mean closing their minds to new ideas. They continue to seek suggestions and advice from others as they take their business into the future.

The University of Wisconsin offers a free publication called 'Guide to Raising Dairy Sheep.' Visit 鈥� search for 鈥渄airy sheep鈥� 鈥� for more information. University of Wisconsin