We decided to stop by on our way to the Charles Schultz Museum and looked for the signs along the highway with the added help of our gps. It led us down a dirt path wide enough for only one car to pass and we came to a very old barn at the end with a super tiny building where the cheese was stored and a small counter where the goods were sold! A lady who speaks Spanish and only enough English to sell a chunk of cheese arrived on the scene to give us samples of 3, 9 and 14 month aged cheese. Each cheese was progressively more firm the longer it was aged. Wowww! I didn't even know what I had been missing out on until now. All these years, I have missed out on fresh cheese made straight from a milked cow on a farm! Who knew there was such a difference?? Our very favorite was the 3 month old cheese. So creamy, fresh, soft and perfect in every way. Best cheese I've ever had, even better cheese than we we've had in Wisconsin. I don't know if I can ever appreciate supermarket cheese again. Cheese was $10/lb. We initially bought half a pound, then we brought it to the museum and nearly finished the whole chunk before we were craving for more and decided to go back for another pound! It was that good! The detour added another 45 mins of traffic to our journey but we felt it was worth it. If you're ever in the area, stop by to grab a pound or more of cheese! The only problem we had was that we didn't know how to store it. We refrigerated it and I'm not sure if we were supposed to do that bc the cheese ended up getting pretty hard :(. But we couldn't ask how to store it properly and for how long because the lady didn't speak enough English. read more

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Yummy cheese. You are given samples of 3 month or 9 month aged cheese. Both were tasty! I bought the original, 3 month one. It was 1 lb for $10. It was a small room with one lady there just ready to sell you the cheese lol. Follow signs for Cheese Factory. When you see the Cheese Factory sign on a window with a business hours sign, you are there! Park in the dirt randomly - there are no clear indications of parking spots or a parking lot. Which is why I knocked off one star, my poor car had to drive through manure because I drove in too far lol and now I need a car wash. Learn from my mistakes! Highly recommend the tasty cheese and feels good to support a local farm. read more

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Finding this little cheese factory is difficult. Once there your first reaction may be...."Is this it?" It's a tiny cheese factory on a working small dairy. It's a bit ramshackle, and the "purchase area" is tiny, I mean really really tiny. BUT, the people were very friendly and the cheese we sampled and purchased was/is amazing! Worth searching out. read more

Amazing cheese!!!!! I highly recommend Joe Matos cheese. Very quickly delivery or you can pick up at the farm. read more

Joe Matos Cheese Factory - Cheese Shops Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

My friend gave me a strong recommendation to stop by this cheese factory and then I happened to be in the area at about 4:30pm so I thought, why not! It's on a long dirt road that turns to mud when it rains, and it had torrentially rained before my visit, so the place was black with a few inches of mud. I pulled up to a series of barns and a small building with a little window and a sign with hours. I was about to turn around when my friend said "the sign says open..." so we got out of the car to check it out. We were immediately assailed by the smell of cow. It was like we'd crawled directly inside a cow patty. I know that's just how farms are, my grandparents had cows on a farm, and I know the rains were what made our personal experience extreme, all I'm trying to say is, you might want to go on a sunny day when it hasn't rained too recently. :) Anyway, we go inside the shop and it's a teeny tiny little area, just a little space to stand and a counter. A stern woman was behind the counter, and when we walked in she presented two cheese samples to us, saying, "six months," and then two more saying, "nine months." We tried the samples (yum!) and I asked about the 18 month but she told me it was sold out. I asked if I could buy some of the 9 month and she went to the back and came back with a quarter wheel and dropped it on the scale. 4.4 pounds! It was far more than I needed so I asked if I could get just a small amount. "How much do you want? 1 pound? 2 pounds?" I asked if I could get a half pound, trying to sound apologetic. She grabbed the small piece she had been carving samples off that day and put that on the scale. 0.33 pounds. I told her that was perfect. She wrapped it up, told me the total, I overpaid slightly (I only had dollars). No change was offered and we left. Kind of an odd experience and I got gross mud in my car as there was no way to walk that day without getting mud caked all over your feet, but it was a delicious cheese and everyone who tried it at my family's thanksgiving loved it. I'd go again (on a drier day). read more

You are going here to get some delicious cheese, from the cheese maker them selves. For that the cheese is 4 solid stars. This place has zero ambiance. It's a working farm. You will drive through dirt & mud. The place to purchase your cheese and to taste is a TINY Room next to wheels of aging cheese. You will be in and out of this place in under 10 minutes. It takes longer to drive in and out than it does to taste and pay. Bring Cash - they will not take credit cards. If you've got your checkbook with you, they'll take checks. It's super close to various wineries and there are plenty of bakeries that make amazing breads (Red Bird being one of them). Grab some bread, their cheese and a bottle of wine and you're all set! read more

The cheese may stand alone, but not for long. Once your friends or family find out how delicious this cheese is it will be hard to get any one-on-one quality time with it. The farm/cheese shop is definitely a small family-run operation. The cheeses, original or aged, are spectacular, firm and slightly creamy with a rich grassy flavor. Don't tell them I said so, but they are a steal at $8/pound. So next time your cruising the backroads of Sonoma County and you see a sign for cheese, you would be wise to stop in and grab some. read more

Joe Matos Cheese Factory - The Cheese stands alone - Cheese Shops Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

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I love love love coming here for fresh cheese every time I'm in the area and this place has not changed over the years. It is a working farm and you can see the across the fence and in the yard. The cheese is stored at room temperature, so I started to leave my wedges wrapped in white butcher paper out since refrigeration dries them out and changes the flavor. If you do have to refrigerate, bring the cheese out to room temperature before eating. Original - aged 3 months Picante - aged 9 months Patrao - aged 16 months They also pair nicely with some vinegar we got from a port tasting, almonds and fruit. But really, anytime is a good time for cheese!! Elisabeta has been dishing up the cheese each time we visited. She's a sweetheart! The farm also sells eggs and some meat. Cash only. There's a soft rind on the older cheese but it's totally edible. If you don't want to eat it, save it and add to soup as a thickener and for flavor. Obrigada Elisabeta and Joe Matos farm! Can't wait until the next visit. read more

Love the cheese. I love the vibe and its authenticity. The 1 year old is the best! The farm chickens and cows. I feel like i enter the old world of cheese making! read more

You can pick up their cheese closer to home, but it won't be the same. Part of the fun is driving down the gravel then dirt road, the swarming flies, the earthy smell of cows, and the tiny tasting room. The samples are very generous. Sometimes they have two sometimes three cheeses to choose from. Worth the detour if you're anywhere near Santa Rosa. read more

Great cheese. Made and aged on site I was here several years ago and this was top of my list to come back to. read more

After spending a delightful afternoon tasting wine with David at Moondance Cellars, on his recommendation, we drove over to the Matos Cheese Factory. It's very rustic, zero frills. We walked into the tiny shop, and our choices were "three months", "six months", and "nine months". We got a half pound of each and have been munching away ever since. Absolutely worth the short side trip. Just be aware that the road to the shop only fits one car. read more

Ok, this review is going to be brutally honest. First, I would like to say that the cheese I purchased was absolutely fantastic!! There's not a lot of choices or flavors, but none the less, I would go and get more if in the area and craving that cheese. I was being spontaneous when I found this place, I was actually looking for a wine and cheese shop. Now for the exact location of this so called Cheese factory... It is completely off the beaten path, you may think that you are going the wrong way, or may think you are lost, but if you follow the GPS directions, they are true....you will be going down the long dirt road and coming to somebody's farm if you will, and it smells like farm animals, I kid you not. I used to live on 3 acres and raised all kinds of farm animals so it smells, be prepared for that. Their so-called cheese factory is just on the backside of the main house, AND, it's not a factory perse, but rather a little shop around the back. There were two choices of cheese, freshly made or aged 9 month cheese. You can ask for samples of each. There's hardly any parking. It was truly a no frills place, just get in and get out. Good luck on your adventure!!! read more

I will use the words "rustic" and "authentic" to describe this working farm visit. Don't expect anything fancy, because it is decidedly not. The cheese is amazing though! read more

Joe Matos Cheese Factory - Moo. - Cheese Shops Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

I drove 2 hours to to this place and it didn't disappoint once we arrived!Other posts talk about how small this place and they aren't kidding!Its a cool family owned farm-cheese factory out in the middle of no where,in part this is what helps make this place great.As we pulled in to what looked like a tiny office area we were greeted by the sweetest cat you can imagine,after a quick interaction I went inside and a nice lady came from the back offered us samples of 3 different aged cheeses 3 months,9 months and 16 months!All 3 were tremendous!I purchased 1 chunk of each for a grand total of 10 dollars,wow what a bargain!After that my wife and I headed to bodega bay where we picked up clam chowder French bread and some meat,it was a great little outing for us.I would recommend this place to adventurous people,as this cheese factory has no parking lot and is off the beaten path for sure. read more

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We first tried the St Jorge cheese from the 9 Islands Bakery. We really enjoyed the cheese, so I went online and ordered a 3-cheese sampler set. Wow! They are all fantastic! My husband's favorite was the Patra and mine was the Picante. The cheese arrived very quickly and was packaged nicely. I ordered some to give to my mother-in-law. She is really going to love it. read more

Strange but great. You'd never find it without iphone (or believing a cardboard sign). We believed. Follow the dirt road and enter the "cheese closet". There was a woman inside the closet that does not speak english. 2 cheeses: 3 month or 9 month. The 9 month was a really rich Parmasean style cheese. The 3 month was a harder to describe pleasant experience We bought 1 pound. Ate at the beach good day. They dont sell bread or salamis. read more

My sister said she found a cheese factory... and this off-the-paved-road trip was definitely very fun and different. You pretty much follow the signs and drive across a dirt road for a little bit into the farm area where they have tractors and a big barn. Look for the "open" sign on one of the side door, after you pass the ducks and cows. (Yup, there are cows right behind a fence, so you can pretty much go up to then to take a gander. Note: these cows stare hard. They are pretty interested in you, and posed for some selfies with me.) The ducks are in this pond, and there are even signs saying ducks are for sale. The shop itself is tiny, way smaller than I thought. There is an adorable mexican lady that helped us. We were at first unsure of what to do, and then she presented us with some cheese samples! St Jorge cheese. Delightful. We ended up getting just a quarter of a pound of the cheese and it was a little over $4. Delicious, and has this amazing slight bitterness to it. Super fresh, definitely recommend this to be a stop off the beaten path! read more

Joe Matos Cheese Factory - The barn - Cheese Shops Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

Well I made my way over to Matos today, thru the various farms & pastures in rural Santa Rosa. The cheese rounds, made the old fashioned way can be seen on the shelves aging behind the very simple sales counter. Two choices were available, I was offered generous samples of both. St. George cheeses, one 2 months aged, the other and very flavorful aged 8 months. $9.00 and $13 per pound respectively. These are old world style cheeses, hand made from their own cows, who reside on property! In business since 1979, this is an authentic farm and factory. It's not fancy, it's very basic, but it 's worth the drive over to see where your food comes from. Note: Cash or check only, no credit cards at this little gem. read more

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Humble farmstead with nice staff and great cheese. The cheese shop is located at the end of a one lane, gravel road. Signage is clear so you can't miss it. Once you get to the turning point of the drive way, passing cows on your right, you'll see blue buildings and plenty of places to park. The shop is marked with a sign for their hours in the window. They also have a public restroom to the right of the cheese store if you need it. Upon opening the door to the shop, a security alarm rang and someone came to greet us. We tasted both of their cheeses: the St. Jorge Original ($9/lb), aged 3 months with a creamy texture, and the St. Jorge Aged ($15/lb), aged 8 months with a harder, more crumbly texture. Not much to see, but from inside the shop you can see the cheese wheels aging on shelves in the back. Recommend stopping by if you're in the area and want to taste some great cheese, but expect a quick in and out, no frills experience. read more

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Well I just needed some great cheese! So I bought a half pound aged 6 month, 9 month and 16. Tasted each and I am thinking of great uses! Pizza, potatoes gratin! Just with crackers and wine. But I bought some stewing beef! A little expensive, but it is amazing and worth twice the price. Steak tomorrow and I will be back to refill! read more

My late husband and I first visited the Matos Cheese Factory almost 40 years ago when we lived in Vallejo and loved the cheese, the owners, and the folksy ambiance. We would buy a 10lb wheel, wrap it in a paper bag and eat it all in a month. Nothing compares to the flavor of their cheese. If I ever am in the area again it is one of the first spots I'm going to visit. 40 years and I'm still thinking about Matos cheese. read more

Good authentic food experience. Definitely would go again. The types of cheeses they had all tasted great.

A fun local spot with very tasty cheese! Buy more than you plan to; you'll be glad you did.

Totally authentic, rustic, Portuguese Cheese Factory. Down a long dirt driveway, the cows are nearby. Sometimes the person who responds to the bell only speaks Portuguese. It's so fun, and the cheese is delish. read more

A lonely drive in sets a sort of ambience for the humble abode which is to come. Peep the cows with ginormous udders meandering around as you enter the property. Matos' daughter (who was there when we went) explained that her dad wanted his cows to grow old and happy instead of slaughtering them. These sentiments set the values for this hardworking family business. Buy whatever cheese they have! It's a good price for what they're offering, a unique strain of cheese which is only made on a small island in the Atlantic (I'm blanking on the story. Ask them!). You can see the hundreds of cheese rounds which rest in the storage room behind the counter. It's all there! Go go gooo read more

Just released it into the house and the dogs are going nuts Joe Matos Cheese is one of my all time favorites because we would visit their farm every summer with my parents. They are hardworking immigrants, generous and humble. I love supporting them and their delicious cheese #eatwithklee read more

Joe Matos Cheese Factory - #eatwithklee we love Joe Matos Cheese! Been going here for over 30 yearsgenerous people with delicious cheese - Cheese Shops Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

Found this amazing aged cheddar at the Santa Rosa Farmers Market at Luther Burbank last week and it is so nutty & delicious! It was perfect on top of my portabella mushroom burger! read more

Joe Matos Cheese Factory - St. Jorge Cheese - Cheese Shops Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

This is a amazing place to go. This family owned farm is very rustic and family oriented and has the most amazing cheese I've ever had.

We didn't get to meet Joe Matos. But the lovely lady attendant, who couldn't speak English, was very friendly. We manage to communicate enough to go through the three cheeses. Marvelous flavors! Original, Picante, and the last unnamed was 18 months. We love this place. So authentic. Cow aromas. This is our second trip since 2019. Bought original and picante! read more

Cheese does not get more real than this! The cows are right there! I love the earthy smell of cow dung, the black birds in the cotton wood tree outside the shop and the sight of the dog herding the cows around with the crisp barks. This place is all about cheese plus the experience of a dairy farm. They have two cheeses - a "natural" and an "aged". Sofie liked the sample of the natural so much she requested a slice before our wedge of natural was wrapped... but the cheese person just gave us each another sample. Bonus: They will sell you duck eggs, live ducks or processed ducks. ------ April 2015 ----- Reply to a Yelper who wanted more info on this: There is no admission - this is just a family that has a bunch of cows and makes cheese. They are not at all a commercial operation of any size. It's a typical California dairy farm from 1970. I grew up in Los Banos and saw a lot of this stuff - broken equipment, pot-holes, a dog running around, a barrel of trash overflowing with junk tractor parts - a gravel road. I don't know the hours... I think they are always open. You drive up and someone steps out of the house and goes to the cheese shop. One time there was a Portuguese woman who could barely speak English making the cheese... last time was an adolescent girl selling the cheese... and duck if you want to buy processed ducks. Sample the cheese and get a block of what you like. If you are wanting to make a perfect day of it, take your cheese - get some good bread and go the VML winery on West Side Road outside Healdsburg to do a tasting... and buy a bottle of red to eat with the bread and cheese. I like VML - and reviewed that too. read more

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Delicious sao jorge cheese, if you're looking for authentic azores cheese and aren't in Fall River MA, this is THE spot. read more

Joe Matos Cheese Factory - Cheese Shops Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

Find this place. Drive down the road. Go see this small farm producing great cheese since 1979. Joe is cool. The aged cheese is delicious. Get a chunk of aged Matos cheese, some grapes, sliced apples, sliced toast, some apricot jam, a chuck of steamed salmon and a bottle of chardonnay and enjoy yourself. read more

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This is an OLD COUNTRY Cheese making family. Don't expect all sterile, modern, and stainless steel everything. This is the real deal and the cheese tastes like love from the old country. They sell one cheese, St. Georges Cheese, and that's it. Walk in and they don't ask they just hack off a big taste for you. Not always the best communication unless you speak Portuguese, but friendly, sincere, hardworking folk, and honest. In years past, we'd buy an 8# wheel for News Years day, serve some, send some home with folks, and save some. Delicious. RECOMMEND that you proceed with your cheese to Marin French Cheese, get some Brie and have lunch by their pond. Make a Cheesy adventure of it. read more

The name says factory, but you are visiting a farm when visiting the cheese maker of Matos Cheese Factory, which only makes one type of cheese, St Jorge Cheese, was purely a destination in itself. This cheese's heritage comes from Sao Jorge, Portugal, the original homeland of the founders Joe and Mary Matos. It involved driving up towards Sebastopol as we were heading towards Iron Horse Vineyard anyway, and was only a little 10 minute drive from California Route 116 anyway that you would be taking. Be prepared to be driving a bit longer than you might think on an all dirt driveway up to the farm buildings. And, you are literally parking in the space amid their barns, there is no parking lot. As you are driving up to the farm you will even pass by the cows who produced the cheeses. As you walk in you might encounter one of the farm cats like we did, or the farm dog as well. The little shop has a little bell that rings as you open the door so that wherever they may be working they then know you are there. The little shop is really more of a counter that only fits a handful of people, though it also offers a glimpse into the much larger aging room. They slice you tastes of a younger and aged version of the cheese. Your whole visit will likely only last 15 minutes or so, but I left with really delicious cheese and the happy feeling of buying directly from the farmers themselves - in fact in my case, directly from the granddaughter of founder Joe Matos himself. They only accept cash or check. read more

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Amazing spot. A must stop if you're in the area. Great cheese and very friendly. Reasonably priced authentic artisan Portuguese cheese!

The store is all the way at the end of the dirt road and there is a small sign for it at the back of the main house. The cheeses smelled great but unfortunately it's not pasteurized. read more

This place is literally out in the middle of nowhere and creeps up on you! You have to drive down a super long gravel driveway to a place barely marked cheese shop and without parking. Then you go inside this little shop that barely caters to 3 people or your squished. The lady at the counter seemed bothered that we wanted to try cheese and then went and loudly chatted in the back and came back up. Not very friendly. The cheese was good but can't tell you what it was because she wouldn't talk to us. read more

Joe Matos Cheese Factory - Cheese Shops Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

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What not to love ? Amazing12 mo aged cheese that we can finish in 1 day. Try it and you will know.

This is authentic as it gets. Don't expect a fancy 'tasting room experience' here. It's a working dairy at the end of a dirt farm lane that makes delicious Portuguese-style cheese. Park in the small dirt lot next to the barn, step out of your car, and breathe deep. Yes, those are cows you smell. Did I mention it's a dairy?! Say hello to the farm cats, the ducks that wander by, and the cows that peer at you with placid, mellow brown eyes. The door to the tiny tasting room and cheese storage building rings a loud bell, letting the owners know you're here. You're offered generous tastes of both of the cheeses they make, sliced straight off the rounds at the counter. Depending on which family member helps you, this might be a great opportunity to practice speaking Portuguese. Through a door behind where you're tasting you can see wheels and wheels of cheese. You might wonder idly how heavy they are, and how far you'd get if you grabbed one and ran for it. But of course, you'd NEVER do that. Instead, you decide to buy a.. small slice of each cheese? Oh, who are you kidding, you know you're walking out with at least a half a pound because you're sure you'll have to share it. Slices in are carved off for you and wrapped in paper. You ask for another sample to keep from tearing into your wrapped cheese on the drive home. I've been a big fan of Matos' St. Jorge cheese for awhile now, and coming to the dairy directly is definitely worth it to show your direct support for this fifth-generation family-owned business. Not to mention the price when you buy here is worth the drive! read more