Good Things Take Time: The Story of Abbot Hill Creamery

August 14, 2026

August has entered its final weeks. Summer has peaked and settled in, aging like a fine wine … Or cheese, depending on who you ask.

Benjamin Meier of Abbot Hill Creamery, our Market’s resident cheesemaker, would tell you it’s definitely aging like a fine cheese.

This week, we’re shining the spotlight on Abbot Hill Creamery, part of the historic Temple-Wilton Community Farm in Wilton, New Hampshire. The creamery crafts roughly 20 styles of artisan cheese and yogurt using raw milk from a 15-cow, grass-fed herd — and if you’ve ever stopped by Benjamin’s Market table, you know there’s usually a story behind every cheese.

From Excess Milk to a Creamery
Benjamin came to New Hampshire from Germany looking for work on a dairy farm. In the summer of 2011, Temple-Wilton Community Farm faced an unusual problem: the farm had produced about 50% more milk than it could sell. 

Rather than see that extra milk go to waste, he began taking some home and making simple cheeses, which he sold at the farm store. 

Local dairy farmers, including Lincoln Geiger, encouraged him to pursue cheesemaking and recognized that a creamery could become an important part of the farm. Benjamin left New Hampshire to gain experience, first working in Wisconsin and later on farms in India. 

But six months later, missing home, Benjamin reached out to Temple-Wilton. Farmer Andrew Kennedy encouraged him to return. While he was away, the farm had transformed an old apprentice apartment into a dedicated cheese room — and was looking for a cheesemaker. 

Benjamin returned in 2013 and established Abbot Hill Creamery. A 50-gallon cheese vat allowed him to expand into harder cheeses, particularly Alpine- and Gouda-style varieties. At first, the cheeses aged in a refrigerator on the farm. Eventually, the creamery built a 150-square-foot walk-in cooler that became its very own cheese cave.

He began attending five farmers markets, expanded his varieties and even started making cheese for other small local farms. In 2015, the products officially began appearing under the Abbot Hill Creamery name. 

Today, the creamery continues to flourish. 

A Cheese for Every Taste
Benjamin specializes in small, limited batches of traditional artisan cheeses, from Feta, Gouda, Cheddar and Mozzarella to specialty cheeses such as Camembert and Bleu.

His eclectic lineup draws inspiration from European and North American cheesemaking traditions. Each cheese is aged to perfection, individually wrapped by hand and labeled with Ben’s own hand-drawn artwork. 

There’s Haloumi, a cheese with roots in Cyprus and Greece, made at Abbot Hill with mint grown right outside the creamery door. It’s delicious on its own, but Market shoppers should try frying it in a little hot oil — the texture becomes wonderfully chewy and almost sausage-like.

Then there’s Temple Mountain, an Alpine-style cheese with a nutty, herbal flavor that has become a Market favorite.

High Mowing is another crowd-pleaser: a mild, semi-soft cheese aged in wax for more than 60 days. Its texture falls somewhere between Havarti and Gouda, making it excellent for melting, snacking or packing into a lunchbox. It’s especially popular with younger cheese lovers.

And don’t overlook the Quark, similar to cream cheese but with a rich, tangy character. Abbot Hill’s sheep-milk quark makes a wonderful creamy addition to dishes featuring fresh Market vegetables and pasture-raised chicken.

A Market Staple
We consider Benjamin a true Market staple — if not an outright necessity.

It’s not unusual to see our vendors enjoying a piece of Ben’s cheese alongside a loaf of bread from Woodman’s Artisan Bakery. And if you’ve ever asked Benjamin about his cheeses, you’ve probably seen what happens next: his face lights up, his hands start moving as he describes the personality and flavor of each variety, and suddenly you’re learning far more about cheese than you expected. 

It’s one of the things we love most about having local farmers and food makers at the Market. Their enthusiasm is contagious — and it’s hard to walk away from his table without taking home a piece of cheese. 

And, of course, our regular shoppers know the secret: you’ll be back for more. 

What’s New at Abbot Hill Creamery?
We caught up with Benjamin to find out what’s been happening at the creamery over the past year.

There’s a new member of the team. Jackson Mitchell recently joined Abbot Hill Creamery with the goal of staying on longer and taking on the daily work at the creamery. Ben continues in a leadership role.

The cheesemaking process has become even more closely tied to the farm. Since this winter, all of Abbot Hill Creamery’s aged cheeses have been made with the freshest possible milk. Most mornings at 5 a.m., milk is pumped directly from the cows into the cheese vat — meaning the milk used to make the aged cheeses is often less than half an hour old. Benjamin says this is the foundation for producing safe, high-quality cheese.

 The creamery is also cultivating its own cheese cultures from its own milk, further deepening the connection between the farm, the milk and the finished cheese.

 And Abbot Hill continues to collaborate with other small creameries and farms, including Brookford Farm, Sartell Farm and Black-Eyed Susan’s Sheep Dairy.

New Cheese on the Horizon
Market shoppers can look forward to plenty of favorites, including fresh Mozzarella, fresh Feta and Swiss-type and Alpine cheeses — especially those nutty, firm varieties that Abbot Hill Creamery does so well.

And there’s a brand-new cheese, too: Cheskwadadas, meaning “Kingfisher” in the Abenaki language. It’s a creamy, mild cheese washed with gin.

Benjamin explains that Abbot Hill has begun choosing names from the language Indigenous people used here as a way of acknowledging their culture and the profound injustices they have endured.

We think that’s a meaningful way to connect the history of this place with the food being made here today. 

So, as August winds down and summer begins its slow transition toward fall, stop by the Market and see what’s aging well at Abbot Hill Creamery.