Barely Buzzed

Cheddar rubbed with espresso and lavender

Barely Buzzed is the perfect party cheese. It’s easy to pair, stunning to look at, and always the center of attention on the cheese board.

Flavor

• Notes of butterscotch and caramel
• Nutty
• Buttery 
• Creamy texture

Pair  

• Toasted nuts
• Chocolate
• Red wines - Cabs, Syrah, Zin
• Beer - Stout, Porter, Ales

Ingredient info

Vegetarian rennet, cow's milk, all ingredients rubbed on the rind are organic, this is a gluten-friendly product     

The Barely Buzzed Story

Tim Welsh had an idea—coffee and lavender rubbed on cheese. It wasn’t a common combination or technique for flavored cheese, but he thought it might work.

Before moving forward, he ran it by the cheese experts at Utah State University. Their response? It wouldn’t work. The cheese, theoretically, would become rancid and acidic too fast and inedible. 

But Tim and his team didn’t know what they didn’t know. So, they tried it anyway.

The result? Barely Buzzed—now an award-winning cheese and one of Beehive Cheese’s most popular creations. Sometimes, not knowing the “rules” is exactly what leads to something great.

Barely Buzzed kicked off a movement in the American artisan cheese world of rubbed-rind cheeses and has inspired dozens of other cheesemakers to use this method. 

Where does the coffee come from? 

Tim Welsh's brother, Dan, owned a coffee roasting company in Grand Junction, CO, called Colorado Legacy. He roasted a South American blend named Beehive Blend and shipped it to Beehive Cheese weekly.

Recipes

• Buzzed Cowboy Sammy
• Movie Night Popcorn
• Barely Buzzed Apple Pie
• Panna Cotta
• Cheese Puffs