Jessica Burt '96 originally intended to major in chemistry and biology at Amherst, but ultimately majored in geology, a choice that led to her spending more study time outside, which would ultimately lead her back to her native Martha’s Vinyard, making cheese.
For a Martha’s Vinyard Times piece about cheesemakers on the Vinyard, Burt talked about her work at Mermaid Farm, which has had a variety of cheesemakers and has begun adding aged cheeses to their lineup. She’s been there since 2016.
“We had a banner winter in the dairy,” Jessica told the publication. “I feel like we are in good shape for a busy summer.”
Jessica is modest about her cheesemaking: “Any success I have as a small cheesemaker is because we have amazing milk to work with,” she said.