New Sunnyside gourmet cheese shop opens Dec. 15

Two of Cheese + Provisions providers, Consider Bardwell and Parish Hill Creamery (below).

Cheese+Provisions, Denver’s newest destination for artisan cut-to-order cheeses, salumi and gourmet grocery goods, will open its doors on Dec. 15. Located in the burgeoning Sunnyside neighborhood at 2432 W. 44th Ave., Cheese+Provisions will offer unlimited tastings of a wide selection of both new and old world cheeses; grab-and-go sandwiches; in-store cheese boards with wine, beer or champagne pairings; a curated collection of gourmet grocery goods; catering platters and a Cheese of the Month Club, complete with tasting notes and an ever-rotating offering of hand-selected cheeses.

Cheese+Provisions is owned by husband-and-wife duo, Steve and Kim Duty. Steve is a Culinary Institute of America-trained chef and award-winning winemaker, cheesemaker and brewer, who believes every cheese has a story to tell, from farm to table.

With more than a decade of experience in the cheesemaking industry, Steve served as a professional cheesemonger in two of Denver’s high-end cheese shops; led a team at Whole Foods Market’s specialty cheese and charcuterie food counter; owned and operated True Ewe Farm, his own artisan creamery and cheese-making operation, which he built from the ground up in Rappahannock, Va., in partnership with his wife, Kim and was the general manager of an award-winning winery in Virginia, which grew from 600 cases each year, to more than 3,500 under his tutelage.

“I know, firsthand, how painstaking the process is and how much love and care goes into each wheel of artisan cheese,” Steve Duty said. “Each cheesemaker is a chef in their own right, manipulating recipes and making thoughtful choices to achieve that perfect bite. I’ve slept on many a barn floor and spent several bitter-cold winters in sheep husbandries learning the trade, inside and out. It’s been a long road to get here, but we’ve made it, and I can’t wait to open the door to Cheese+Provisions and invite our guests to explore the wonderful world of cheese.”

Setting Cheese+Provisions apart from other cheese shops in Denver is its relationships with east coast creameries who only sell their crafted cheeses to trusted partners, and a special distributor relationship with a company in Vermont – the epicenter of the American cheese movement – that is trucking pallets of cheeses directly to Cheese+Provisions. This will allow the Denver shop to stock cheeses not found in any other store in Colorado, or, in a few cases, even west of the Mississippi.

Some of the shop’s New World artisan cheese partners include Consider Bardwell Farm, Spring Brook Farm, known for its sustainable practices and “Farm for City Kids” program; Woodcock Farms, a family-owned business that has been making cheese for more than 15 years and the Parish Hill Creamery, owned by Vermont legend, Peter Dixon.

“What began as an idea and a dream about 18 months ago is finally becoming a reality,” Kim Duty said. “We’ve been really thoughtful about how we want to build this business, and how we can truly honor our artisan partners who we respect so much. We can’t tell you how excited we are to bring true cheesemaking craftsmanship to Denver. We believe that cheese should be fun, and that’s what Cheese+Provisions is all about.”

With a focus not only on curating unique, high-quality cheeses and celebrating the artisans behind each product, Cheese+Provisions is also dedicated to creating an engaging, educational environment in which both veteran foodies and curious newcomers interested in learning more about the sometimes intimidating, but fascinating world of cheese, will enjoy shopping and eating.

Cheese+Provisions is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.