DUNDEE, Ore. — Driving to Briar Rose Creamery might make you think you’re headed in the wrong direction. With each turn, blue informational signs point drivers toward some of the Dundee Hills’ most storied wineries: Bergström, Cameron, Domaine Roy et Fils, Furioso, and Winderlea — all staples along the legendary Worden Hill Road.
So when the route veers onto a gravel road past yet another winery — Artist Block’s Dundee Hills tasting room — and a small yellow sign points uphill to a sloped property surrounded by Douglas firs, don’t panic. You’re in the right place.
“I was told that several wineries actually looked at this location to plant a vineyard,” said Briar Rose Creamery founder Sarah Marcus. “Some of the earliest vines on the Dundee Hills were planted a few hundred yards from here. But it wouldn’t get enough sun. So I thought it would be a perfect place to make cheese.”
Surrounded by vineyards and perched on jory soil that helps make the Willamette Valley so special, Marcus and Briar Rose Creamery are quietly producing some of the best cheese in the country — and, by some measures, the world. The proof is on the creamery’s award wall, a roughly 6-by-8-foot display covered with plaques and certificates.
Most recently, Marcus earned a perfect 100 score for her fromage blanc at the American Cheese Society’s annual competition.
“That was crazy,” she said. “It’s a really big deal. I can’t imagine they give out perfect scores very frequently. But now we’ve got to move on and keep going.”
Marcus started her cheese career at Cowgirl Creamery in California. Her education took her from the East Coast to Europe, and then back to the States as an assistant cheesemaker at Goat Lady Dairy in North Carolina before joining the Cheese School of San Francisco. She later returned to Cowgirl Creamery as a cheesemonger.
She said she wasn’t initially aiming to make cheese.
“I thought it would be something really fun to learn,” Marcus said. “It was just curiosity. I could have done anything — I just wanted to create something. But I like the alchemy, the science. It’s the merging of art and science to create something completely individual and unique out of four basic ingredients.”
The California grind wore her down, though. She and her husband wanted to start their own business, but she said the state’s business environment wasn’t ideal for a startup cheesemaker.
She landed in Dundee after visiting family in McMinnville. Struck by the region’s lush grass, she learned that the Willamette Valley has such a lush green carpet, it is known as the grass seed capital of the world. Great grass means well-fed cows, well-fed cows produce rich milk, and great milk makes great cheese.
“That’s the hope for any cheesemaker,” she said. “A lot of the hard work is done by the farmers and the cows. We take that incredible milk and hopefully, with a little bit of talent, skill, and cheese fairy magic, we turn it into great cheese.”
She first connected with Perrin Family Farms in Woodburn, using their organic Ayrshire cows’ milk. While most commercial cheeses come from Jersey cow milk, prized for their high-fat milk and yields, Ayrshire milk is naturally partially homogenized. It’s a cheesemaker’s dream.
“The milk is actually known as ‘cheesemaker’s milk’ because it makes our jobs easier and produces very rich and flavorful cheeses,” Marcus said.
She later added Abiqua Acres in Silverton, which raises Guernsey cows known for high-protein milk that gives cheese a rich golden color. She uses it for her award-winning Butterbloom, a soft-rind cheese similar to Brie that quickly became a bestseller. The creamery even created a smaller, personal-sized version called Butterbaby for surrounding tasting rooms.
“It’s our No. 1 product right now,” Marcus said as her staff organized shelves of Butterblooms and Butterbabies for distribution at the production facility in Dundee. “The texture is really a product of that Guernsey milk, and you can see it in the color. You can taste it in the flavor. It’s a lot more gold and rich than what you can get from the grocery store.”
Last year, Butterbloom won silver medal at the American Cheese Society competition. This year, it took gold. Butterbaby also earned a Good Food Award in 2024. Marcus has been winning accolades since 2013, including two for chocolate chèvre truffles that predate her cheese awards.
This year’s perfect score for fromage blanc, made with Ayrshire milk, was especially meaningful, she said. The cheese, similar to cream cheese in consistency with a fresh, slightly tangy flavor, is her favorite and a “daily cheese” in her household.
“I’ll put it on toast, I’ll put it in my eggs, I’ll have it for a snack with crackers — it’s just a really nice, easy, satisfying cheese,” she said.
Marcus said the awards mean a little more to her because she’s going up against some of the largest cheesemakers in the world, and still consistently winning awards in competitive categories against large cheesemakers who have scientists (plural), labs, and other control mechanisms that should be able to, in theory, create the best cheese in the world, consistently.
“I don’t have large lab equipment or a team of experts that can sit there and help me analyze something and critique it,” she said. “It’s all learned through mistakes — trial and error. There’s some book learning, but each cheese we make comes through extensive trial and error, and we’re seeing the results of that.”
She is also preparing to release or restock other varieties, including Phoebe, wrapped in spruce bark, and Daphne, a firm, aged cow’s milk cheese with brown butter notes. Future creations, she said, will depend largely on what inspires her.
For now, Briar Rose is focused on keeping up with demand for its soft cheeses from the small Dundee shop.
The creamery primarily distributes through wineries and local cheese shops but welcomes visitors to its cheese window, where Marcus offers samples and sells what’s currently available. Many customers stop by while touring local tasting rooms, often picking up cheese for a picnic.
Marcus said she doesn’t know what’s next, and that’s part of the fun. After 15 years making cheese in Dundee, the only constant, she said, is change.
“I’ve been making cheese for 20 years,” she said. “I’m always trying to keep it fresh, keep my interest in it. All of those medals are great, and the validation helps. But it’s the constant change that’s exciting to me and will keep me coming back every day.”
Learn more about Briar Rose Creamery at its website.
