Briar Rose Creamery

What Briar Rose Creamery does

Briar Rose Creamery is an artisan cheese company founded in 2010 by Sarah Marcus and Jim Hoffman in Dundee, Oregon, in Yamhill County within Oregon's Willamette Valley. The creamery handcrafts small-batch cow's milk cheeses from certified organic Ayrshire and Guernsey milk, sourced exclusively from two family-owned Oregon dairies: Perrin Family Farms, home to Oregon's only certified organic Ayrshire herd (near Woodburn, Oregon), and Abiqua Acres, a certified organic Guernsey dairy near Silverton, Oregon. The creamery employs a small team of approximately five cheesemakers and uses time-honored techniques including culturing with microbial (vegetarian) rennet, hand-cutting curds, temperature-controlled aging, and specialized affinage methods such as brine washing, beer washing with Deschutes Brewery's Black Butte Porter (used for Lorelei), and French spruce bark wrapping (used for Phoebe). The product portfolio spans fresh spreadable Fromage Blanc, soft bloomy rind Guernsey cheeses (Butterbloom, Butterbaby), semi-firm aged wheels (Callisto, Damona, Honnalee, Maia), the seasonal bark-wrapped Phoebe, the basket-shaped feta-style Fata Morgana, and Chocolate Truffles. The company previously produced goat and sheep milk cheeses but discontinued those lines in 2018 and 2022 respectively to focus exclusively on cow's milk.

The creamery operates a multi-channel go-to-market: a direct-to-consumer farm store at 19231 NE Fairview Dr., Dundee (open Fridays and Saturdays 12–5pm year-round, plus by appointment Monday–Thursday), three regional farmers' markets (Beaverton Saturdays April–November, Portland PSU Saturdays April–December, McMinnville Thursdays May–October), and wholesale to restaurants, wineries, cheese shops, and grocery retailers across Oregon, Washington, California, and select national locations including Alaska, North Carolina, New Mexico, Texas, and Southern California. Distribution is supported by a network of regional and national specialty distributors including Provvista/Chefs Warehouse, Tomales Bay Foods, Corsican Cellar, COWBELL Fine Cheese, and Gourmet Imports. Pricing is not publicly disclosed; cheese is sold by weight at the farm store and by unit at wholesale, with mail-order handled by partner Good Company Cheese in Newberg, Oregon.

Marketing is built almost entirely on earned media and community reputation rather than paid advertising: national press coverage in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Food & Wine Magazine, Culture Magazine, San Francisco Chronicle, The Oregonian, and Sunset Magazine; 9+ Good Food Awards spanning 2013–2024; multiple American Cheese Society medals (Gold, Silver, Bronze) from 2011–2024; a 2024 World Cheese Awards Gold for Butterbloom; and a 2021 Food & Wine Magazine Top 50 U.S. Cheesemakers designation. As of April 10, 2026, founders Sarah Marcus and Jim Hoffman announced their retirement after 16 years; production ceased at the end of April 2026, and the 12-acre farm, home, turnkey creamery, recipes, and business have been listed for sale, with the brand's cheeses described on the website as 'on hiatus while we look for someone to continue our legacy.'

Name

Briar Rose Creamery

Legal name

Briar Rose Creamery

Website

https://briarrosecreamery.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Briar Rose Creamery is an artisan cheese company that handcrafts small-batch cow's milk cheeses from organic Ayrshire and Guernsey milk in Dundee, Oregon. It sells through farm store, farmers' markets, and wholesale to restaurants, wineries, and retailers across Pacific Northwest.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Artisan Cheese

NAICS

Cheese Manufacturing (311513)

SIC

Dairy Products (2020)

akta.pro primary industry

Ripened Natural Cheese Manufacturing (Semi-Soft, Hard & Blue) (AFAHABAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Fresh/Natural Cheese Manufacturing (Unripened & Soft) (AFAHABAA)

Keywords

• Artisan cheesemaking
• Organic farmstead cheese
• Specialty cheese retail
• Wholesale cheese distribution
• Aged cheese affinage

Headquarters

HQ city

Dundee

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Direct Farm Store Sales: The creamery operates an on-site farm store in Dundee, Oregon open to the public on Fridays and Saturdays (Noon–5pm) and by appointment Monday–Thursday. Consumers purchase cheese directly at the point of production.
2. Farmers' Markets: Briar Rose participates in regional farmers' markets including Beaverton Farmers Market (April–November), Portland Farmers Market at PSU (April–December), and McMinnville Farmers Market (May–October), selling cheese directly to consumers.
3. Wholesale to Retailers and Restaurants: Wholesale distribution of cheese to cheese counters, grocery stores, specialty food shops, and restaurants across Oregon, Washington, California, and select national locations. Includes regional chains (New Seasons, Market of Choice, Whole Foods) and independent retailers (Good Company Cheese, Providore Fine Foods).
4. Wholesale to Foodservice/Hospitality: Cheese sold to restaurants and wineries in the Willamette Valley and beyond for culinary use. Partner restaurants include Red Hills Market, Joel Palmer House, Jory Restaurant, and many others.
5. Distributor/Mail Order: Cheese distributed through distributors (Provvista/Chefs Warehouse, Tomales Bay Foods, Corsican Cellar, COWBELL Fine Cheese, Gourmet Imports) and mail-order through Good Company Cheese for consumers outside the region.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Briar Rose Creamery handcrafts small-batch artisan cheese from certified organic Ayrshire and Guernsey cow's milk sourced from two Oregon family farms (Perrin Family Farms and Abiqua Acres). The creamery produces fresh spreadable Fromage Blanc, bloomy rind soft cheeses (Butterbloom, Butterbaby), semi-firm aged wheels (Callisto, Damona, Honnalee, Maia), feta-style Fata Morgana, seasonal spruce bark-wrapped Phoebe, and chocolate truffles, selling via on-site farm store, farmers' markets, and wholesale to retailers, restaurants, and wineries.

Product overview

Briar Rose Creamery is an artisan cheese company offering a portfolio of handcrafted cow's milk cheeses made from certified organic Ayrshire and Guernsey milk sourced from family farms in Oregon. The product lineup includes fresh spreadable cheeses (Fromage Blanc), bloomy rind soft cheeses (Butterbloom, Butterbaby), semi-firm aged cheeses (Callisto, Damona, Fata Morgana, Honnalee, Maia), seasonal bark-wrapped cheese (Phoebe), and chocolate cheese truffles. Most cheeses are pasteurized and aged from 2 weeks to 4+ months. The company also previously produced goat and sheep milk cheeses but discontinued those in 2018 and 2022 respectively. As of April 2026, the company announced retirement and cessation of production.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fromage Blanc

Quantifiable outcome

• 9+ Good Food Awards received since founding
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers19 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Perrin Family Farms (Woodburn, Oregon)coreOthersPerrin Family Farms near Woodburn, Oregon provides certified organic Ayrshire cow's milk to Briar Rose Creamery. This is Oregon's only herd of certified organic Ayrshire cows. Ayrshire milk is naturally partially homogenized with small fat particles, making it ideal for cheesemaking and aging. The herd grazes on 250 acres of green pasture overlooking Butte Creek in the Willamette Valley, grass-fed for most of the year.
• Abiqua Acres (Silverton, Oregon)coreOthersCertified organic Guernsey dairy near Silverton, Oregon. Provides Guernsey cow's milk used for bloomy rind cheeses like Butterbloom and Butterbaby. Guernsey milk contributes high butterfat and tropical fruit aromatics to the cheeses.
• Deschutes Brewery and Public HousecoreOthersDeschutes Brewery's Black Butte Porter is used to wash the Lorelei cheese as it ages. This beer-washing technique is an ancient tradition that encourages the rind to develop a stronger aroma and more meaty, complex flavor profile.
• Good Company Cheese (Newberg, Oregon)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCheese shop in Newberg, Oregon that curates a selection of Briar Rose cheeses and ships them nationwide via mail order. Serves as the primary direct-to-consumer mail-order channel for Briar Rose since the creamery does not ship cheese directly.
• Provvista / Chefs Warehouse / Alexis Foods (Portland, OR)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPortland-based broadline food distributor carrying Briar Rose cheeses for foodservice customers in the Pacific Northwest.
• Tomales Bay Foods (Petaluma, CA)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCalifornia-based specialty food distributor carrying Briar Rose cheeses for foodservice and retail customers in California.
• Corsican Cellar (Seattle, WA)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSeattle-based specialty food and wine distributor carrying Briar Rose cheeses for retail and foodservice customers in Washington State.
• COWBELL Fine Cheese (Portland, OR)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPortland-based specialty cheese distributor carrying Briar Rose cheeses.
• Gourmet ImportsmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNational specialty food distributor that carries Briar Rose cheeses and ships to customers beyond California, enabling broader national reach.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Jasper Hill Farm: Vermont-based award-winning artisan cheesemaker specializing in raw-milk aged cow's milk cheeses (Bayley Hazen Blue, Winnimere, Harbison). Closest U.S. analog to Briar Rose's aged-cheese affinage approach and craft positioning.
• Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Company: California farmstead cheesemaker producing Original Blue, Bay Blue, and Toma. Directly comparable single-origin, farm-driven artisan cheese model with national distribution.
• Rogue Creamery: Oregon-based artisan cheesemaker producing award-winning aged and blue cheeses from organic cow's milk. Direct peer in the same category, geography, and distribution channels (named alongside Briar Rose in Food & Wine's Top 50 list).
• Vermont Creamery: Vermont-based artisan creamery producing fresh and aged cow and goat milk cheeses (Crottin, Bijou, St. Albans). Comparable craft positioning and product mix including fresh spreadable cheeses similar to Briar Rose's Fromage Blanc.
• Cowgirl Creamery: Point Reyes, California-based artisan cheesemaker producing organic cow's milk cheeses including Mt. Tam and Red Hawk. Direct peer in artisan organic cheesemaking; notably the firm where Briar Rose's founder Sarah Marcus trained.
• Cascadia Creamery: Woodland, Washington-based artisan cheesemaker producing small-batch cow's milk cheeses with regional sourcing. Direct Pacific Northwest peer in the artisan aged-cheese category (named alongside Briar Rose in Top 50 list).
• Marin French Cheese Company: California-based artisan cheesemaker producing traditional bloomy-rind cheeses since 1865. Comparable in soft bloomy-rind product category similar to Briar Rose's Butterbloom and Butterbaby.

Broad incumbents

• Cypress Grove: California-based specialty cheesemaker (owned by Saputo) famous for fresh goat milk cheeses including Humboldt Fog. Comparable in artisan fresh and bloomy-rind cheese categories with broader national distribution.
• Beecher's Handmade Cheese: Seattle-based artisan cheesemaker with broader scale and national retail presence via Flagship and超市. Comparable artisan cow's milk cheese portfolio (Flagship Reserve) with broader distribution and food hall footprint than Briar Rose.

Others

• Tomales Bay Foods: California-based specialty cheese distributor and retailer. Acts as one of Briar Rose's wholesale distribution partners and is a comparable regional cheese distributor in the Pacific Northwest artisan market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/briar-rose-creamery

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Briar Rose Creamery