A Journey to the Heart of Korean Cheese

• ByJoshua Hall

Shim Yo-seob tending his goats at Doomari Farm, Imsil, October 28, 2014.

Joshua Hall for The Wall Street Journal

Four hours south of Seoul, a sleepy village nestled among forested mountains with the aroma of goat and cow dung in the air is the home of Korean cheese.
Imsil, in North Jeolla Province, was where Korea’s first cheese was produced in 1964 by Belgian missionary Didier Serstevens, who wanted to bring the community a sustainable income. The first few batches were named after tofu and were white in color according to the Imsil village council.
In recent years, Korean cheese consumption has taken off as fusion restaurants add it to local dishes and a love of pizza makes Korea a prime market for U.S. exporters. The majority of U.S. cheese arrives as blocks of cheddar weighing up to 100 kilograms, but there’s increased interest in local creations, too.
Shim Yo-seob, a cheese maker and owner of Doomari Farm in Imsil, ages blocks of cow’s milk Velk cheese for 3-6 months. The cheese is surprisingly delicious and tastes like a quality European product.
“Cheese is much more profitable” than selling milk, he says. Most of his sales are through his website but government-supported retail promotions in Seoul have also helped, he says.

A selection of cheeses from Doomari Farm, Imsil, October 28, 2014.

Joshua Hall for The Wall Street Journal

Mr. Shim originally grew rice but the labor involved to make a profit was too hard, he says. He has lived in the village for 20 years, where he also trains farmers on animal welfare, cheese production and teaches about flavors that people in the cities like.
Sales of Mr. Shim’s cheese have increased 30% each year for the last five years. One of his most popular cheeses is Bok cheese, a Casablanca goat’s cheese that is touted as bringing good fortune. It’s shaped like a traditional New Year’s money bag and literally means ‘good luck cheese’. It’s also pricey, at 24,000 won ($23) for a 300 gram block.
Imsil Cheese is now a government-protected regional name and a brand the local farmers are keen to defend. “I have people coming here all the time asking for samples. They’re often from big companies wanting to steal my recipes,” Mr. Shim says.
Imsil has drawn the attention of foreign cheese connoisseurs based in Korea. French chef Jean Paul Baurez and agronomist Romuald Pieters, frustrated with a market dominated by American cheddar, turned to Imsil to produce Tomme de Coree, a hard pressed cow’s milk cheese based on Mr. Pieters’ family recipe.
The French duo initially sold the cheese to a few expats but since focusing on restaurants and department stores sales are up 50% over last year, says Mr. Baurez.

String cheese being made at Doomari Farm, Imsil, October 28, 2014.

Joshua Hall for The Wall Street Journal

Food tourism is booming in Imsil with construction of buildings seen throughout the village. Mr. Shim is expanding to the family tourism market with a new “cheese experience” building next to his goat pen.
The eating experience is a factor in the popularity of cheese says food tour operator, Kang Tae-ahn. “Koreans love texture. We like the chewy sensation,” she says.
Tourism income helps offset costly barriers to innovate. Government concern about food safety means each type of cheese has to be continuously inspected at a cost to producers of 500,000 won every month.
Mr. Shim is undeterred. “We need to produce a distinctive cheese that is known around the world, like gouda,” he says.
Local producers meet several times a year to co-operate on developing new cheeses. Mr. Shim is currently experimenting with chocolate cheese and a cheese made from wild herbs and flowers aimed at curing colds.
These cheese ideas are not that crazy, he says, pointing out that the National Agricultural Cooperative has for a decade been producing a type of cheese that’s quintessentially Korean: it’s kimchi flavored.
– Lee Se-yeon contributed to this article