CAMAS — A new downtown Camas business is on a mission to expand palates.
“Our mission is to curate an exceptional selection of cheeses, providing a unique and delightful experience that invites everyone to try something new,” Camas Cheese Co. owners Andy and Tiffany Regan say in an online introduction to their specialty cheese shop in Camas’ historic downtown.
Customers are finding their way to Camas Cheese Co., which had its grand opening with the Downtown Camas Association at July’s First Friday event, just a few weeks before thousands packed downtown for the annual Camas Days celebration in late July.
“We moved here three years ago and fell in love with Camas,” Andy Regan said.
Inside the cozy cheese shop at 231 N.E. Fourth Ave., the Regans offer a carefully curated assortment of local, regional and international cheeses, as well as cured meats, crackers, baguettes, jams, olives, nuts, honey and other delectable items that can help create a party-worthy cheese board.
CAMAS CHEESE CO.
231 N.E. Fourth Ave., Camas
Open from noon to 6 p.m. Wednesdays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays.
For more information, visit camascheeseco.com, call 360-833-2982, email howdy@camascheeseco.com, or find the shop on Instagram and Facebook using the handle @camascheeseco.
“Our tagline is: ‘Like love, cheese should be shared,’ ” Tiffany Regan said.
Being downtown has its advantages, the Regans said, including the ability to partner with other local Camas businesses to host events such as the July 26 Taste of the Pacific Northwest event that featured wine and artisanal cheese-pairings from the Camas Cheese Co. and Camas Cellars, a downtown Camas wine bar.
Even before finding the 325-square-foot space on Northeast Fourth Avenue, the Regans had been scouring the Pacific Northwest and the world for memorable cheeses and cheese accompaniments that have brought them so much joy in their own travels.
The Regans, who both grew up in Kansas but met in Colorado, moved to Camas three years ago for a work opportunity. Tiffany Regan had experience in the food industry, and Andy Regan had a background in sales, so when the couple decided to go into business for themselves, opening a food-related shop — especially a cheese shop — came naturally.
“We realized that our favorite memories all involved a cheese plate, baguette and wine,” Andy Regan said. “And we both love cheese, so we just went for it.”
The end result is a shop that manages to pack a variety of cut-to-order cheeses and other goodies into one of downtown Camas’ smaller retail spaces.
On a recent Monday afternoon — two days before the shop received its weekly shipment of new cheeses — the display held dozens of varieties marked with cards noting the milk type, creamery, region of origin, how long the cheese may have been aged and the cost per pound.
Shelves are stocked with everything from Vampire Slayer, a garlic cheddar from award-winning Face Rock Creamery on the Southern Oregon coast, and goudas — smoked and regular — from Appel Farms in Kent to one of the Regans’ personal favorites: a 15-month aged, summer-milk comte cheese from France.
The Regans are on the hunt for sought-after farmstead cheeses, made from milk that comes from animals living on the same farm where the cheese is produced.
“Ferndale is a cheese mecca,” Andy Regan said, pointing to cheeses from Ferndale Farmstead, a “seed to cheese” creamery about 10 miles north of Bellingham that prides itself on producing artisanal cheeses using milk from cows raised on the farm eating Ferndale Farmstead crops.
The Regans, who live walking distance from their shop with their 8-year-old lab-shepherd mix, Cora, have tried to infuse Camas Cheese Co. with their own brand of lighthearted humor.
“We can get a little nerdy,” Tiffany Regan said. “We’re letting our personalities come through.”
The result is a fun experience that offers something for cheese connoisseurs, as well as cheese newbies. The Regans are enthusiastic about educating customers including how the type of milk, the animals’ food sources and the aging process can transform simple ingredients — milk, salt, enzymes and a “good bacteria” — into a dazzling array of flavor profiles.
Camas Cheese Co. is open from noon to 6 p.m. Wednesdays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays. For more information, visit camascheeseco.com, call 360-833-2982, email howdy@camascheeseco.com or find the shop on Instagram and Facebook using the handle @camascheeseco.
