Public invited to taste world's best cheeses, March 7 in Madison

The World Championship Cheese Contest is coming to town.

With it comes the exclusive opportunity for the public to taste 20 of the world's best cheeses, meet 40 international judges from six continents, and witness the final round of judging to determine the 2012 World Champion Cheese.

Tickets for "An Evening at the World Championship Cheese Contest" at the Monona Terrace on Wednesday, March 7 are $25 and are on sale at cheesecontest.com.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m., with the Championship Round of Judging to start at 7 p.m.

Attendees will witness the exclusive final round of cheese judging, as judges determine and name the 2012 World Champion.

In addition, more than 20 of the world's best and most rare cheeses - including several of Wisconsin's finest - will be sampled until 8:30 p.m.

The event is open to a limited number of attendees, with all tickets sold in advance. Appetizers will be served and a cash bar available.

International cheeses competing for gold medals in the 29th biennial World Championship Cheese Contest, held in Madison from March 5-7, will be prepared exclusively for this event.

These cheeses will be fresh from the judges' evaluation, arriving from nations such as Argentina, Australia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

Wisconsin cheesemakers attending and sampling their finest cheeses include: BelGioioso Cheese, Carr Valley Cheese, Holland's Cheese, LaClare Farm, Montchevre, and Sartori.

All Wisconsin cheesemakers represented are either past U.S. champions, or won at least two gold medals in the last World Championship Cheese Contest.

The event is presented by Wisconsin Cheese Originals in partnership with the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association, host of the 29th biennial World Championship Cheese Contest.

For more information, visit: http://www.wisconsin cheeseoriginals.com/ or contact Jeanne Carpenter, Wisconsin Cheese Originals, 608-358-7837.