The country's best cheese?

Leave it to a company from The Dairy State (Wisconsin, for those of you who are state-trivia challenged) to win top honors at the American Cheese Society's competition. And there was a lot of cheese to be judged.... So much cheese, so little time.

Carr Valley Cheese Company of La Valle, Wis., won during the Society's 25th Annual Conference and Cheese Competition July 23-27 in Chicago. Cheese maker Sid Cook garnered the "Best of Show" prize for his Snow White Goat Cheddar cheese. In addition to the award-winner, Carr Valley has a strong selection of other specialty cheeses.

Carr Valley's entry was singled out as the best of the best among the 1,149 cheeses submitted by more than 181 producers.

"For the past decade, it has been a wonderful experience to be part of the American Cheese Society, which is such an excellent forum for exchanging ideas and information," said Cook. "I was stunned and extremely excited to have a Carr Valley cheese receive Best of Show. Truly a thrill of a lifetime, since this competition is the Olympics of cheese!"

Other noteworthy winners include "Best of Show" second runner-up Galax, Va.- based Meadow Creek Dairy's Grayson and third runner-up Carr Valley Cheese Company's Cave Aged Marisa.

"Because it is the 25th anniversary of our conference, we were thrilled to have 1,149 entries, sustaining our momentum from last year's record number of entries in the cheese competition," said David Grotenstein, Chair of the Competition and Judging Committee of the American Cheese Society. "The competition is truly remarkable because it brings together the cheeses that represent emerging trends, outstanding examples of traditional cheese varieties and leaders in the world of American artisan cheese all in one place."

Nearly 1,000 cheese makers, retailers, academicians, enthusiasts, restaurateurs, food writers and cookbook authors convened at the Hilton Chicago, the site of this year's conference, to celebrate the widespread enthusiasm for American specialty cheese.

Every year, the conference culminates in the Festival of Cheese, where all the competition cheeses are on display and available for tasting.