Our dairy supplies high-quality, raw milk to make our farmhouse cheddar, while educating about sustainable farming and the working landscape.

Our Brown Swiss Herd

• 125 milking cows. Each produces about 50 pounds of milk a day for 10 months a year.
• The breed was selected by Derick Webb in the 1950s for its hardiness, foraging ability, milk quality, longevity and temperament.
• Most cows are bred to calve March to June so their peak nutritional need coincides with peak spring pasture growth.
• We raise our all own heifers for milk, and some bulls for dairy beef and purebred breeding stock.

Our Grass-based Dairy

• Our herd is pasture-raised and rotationally grazed from spring to fall. We grow hay and silage without crop herbicides, pesticides or chemical fertilizer.
• The Dairy is Certified Humane by the Humane Farm Animal Care (HFAC) organization in Herndon, VA.
• Our milking parlor, constructed in 1995, is a double-16, mid-line swingover design. It allows virtually uninterrupted milking, with 16 cows lining up on each side of the pit.
• Two people milk about 80 cows an hour. We take extra time to prep cows to ensure the highest quality milk for our cheese.