Park City Creamery is officially the “big cheese” of the Wasatch Back.
Owner, founder and turophile Corinne Zinn, who has crafted handmade artisan cheeses since 2018, was presented the Small Business of the Year Award by the Salt Lake Region Small Business Development Center on Monday in an award ceremony at the creamery headquarters, 1200 W. Lori Lane, Unit A-3, in Heber.
The award was given based on Zinn’s dedication to her craft in making European-style cheese from the milk of cows and goats that live in the high-altitude Midway region, said Jim Herrin, director of the Salt Lake Region Small Business Development Center, which provides free, individual management advising and other assistance to small businesses.
The SLSBDCenter is hosted and partially funded by Salt Lake Community College and is part of the Utah Small Business Development Center Network, according to Herrin.
“We are a program of the U.S. Small Business Administration and funded by the state of Utah and the colleges and universities that host our 14 centers,” he said. “That’s why we provide our services at no cost.”
Herrin has worked with Zinn since the beginning and has seen the effort she puts in to make her company successful.
“She’s run it well, and it still has a lot of potential,” he said.
Zinn is honored and surprised by the award because the Park City Creamery was one of about 500 small, local businesses in the running.
“It was amazing, and I am proud and excited for me and my team,” she said.
Although Zinn founded Park City Creamery in 2018, she has made her own cheese for nearly 20 years.
“I’m from Europe, and I was missing my favorite cheeses when I moved to the U.S.,” she said. “I used to organize wine-and-cheese pairings in Belgium, and you can find cheese stores on every corner of every street in Belgium, especiallyBrussels.”
Some of the pairings Zinn presented included cheeses and wines from Spain, Italy and France before moving to Colorado via Connecticut.
“I was always looking for some good cheeses and just couldn’t find the variety of what I had in Europe,” she said. “There were a lot of wineries in Colorado, so there were some good local wines but nobody was making cheese. So that’s where I started.”
After completing cheese-making training in France and Germany, Zinn began making her own cheese from goats that lived on her farm in Colorado.
“My cheese was distributed to restaurants in Aspen, Crested Butte and some of the ski resorts,” she said.
When Zinn moved to Utah, she worked as the cheese maker at Deer Valley and created a cheese consultant company.
“Deer Valley was fun because it was skiing in the morning and making cheese in the afternoon,” she said with a laugh.
As a cheese consultant, Zinn wanted to help local farmers create different local cheeses.
“I thought maybe they would be interested in making more European-style cheese,” she said.
Zinn left Deer Valley in 2017 and officially started Park City Creamery with the idea to make cheeses that relied on the local terrior — the natural environment such as soil, topography and climate.
“You have those beautiful Wasatch Mountains and our own biodiversity in grass and flora that the cows and goats are eating,” she said.
The cows and goats who provide the milk for Zinn’s cheeses live on Heber Valley Farm, 20 minutes away from the creamery.
“What’s very special about the farm is that the cows are in the field, and crossing the field is a hot spring,” Zinn said. “So the cows are eating the grass that is fed by the spring, and they are also drinking that rich mineral water.”
In addition, Zinn uses the mountain air in her aging cages.
“The air that is pumped into our cages is unique because we’re at a high altitude,” she said. “That makes a difference in the affinage or refining process.”
Zinn creates her own cheese recipes.
“Since I trained in France and Germany, I knew exactly what I was looking for,” she said. “I focused on my own taste because I won’t make a cheese that I don’t like, and I keep in mind what my customers may like.”
Park City Creamery cheeses are available at the creamery but can also be found in Park City at The Market Park City and Copper Moose Farm; Lee’s Market, Heber Valley Farm in Heber; Caputo’s, Harmon’s and Liberty Market in Salt Lake City, as well as local restaurants throughout the state.
“We also are at the Park City Farmer’s Market every Wednesday at Canyons,” she said.
Over the years, Zinn’s products have won multiple Utah Cheese Awards and Best of the West Cheese Awards.
“The cheese we make is authentic, handmade artisan cheese, and the biggest awards are from our customers and chefs from high-end restaurants who have given us their approval and have been using our cheese for years,” she said.
Some fans of Park City Creamery were introduced to Zinn’s cheeses at various fundraisers for local nonprofits.
“We have made cheese boxes for their auctions,” she said. “It’s a good way to support local organizations and get our name out.”
Park City Creamery’s hours are usually from 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m., but since the company is still pretty small, it’s best that customers call before visiting.
“Sometimes restaurants will call us for cheese emergencies, and we still do our own deliveries,” Zinn said. “So people should call to make sure we’re here.”