Turning goat milk into ‘Nashville Hot Cheese’

If you have dairy goats, you probably love to take the milk and turn it into all kinds of products. A middle Tennessee couple is using their milk to make “Nashville Hot Cheese”!

The goats at Noble Springs Farm in Franklin, Tennessee get excited when it is milking time. That also means it is feeding time. Justyne and Dustin Noble have had their dairy goat operation since 2009, but goats have been part of their life for as long as they can remember.

According to Dustin, “They were a 4-H project for Justyne, and I was just interested in agriculture and so my parents got me some dairy goats so I could learn about agriculture. I turned my hobby into my occupation.”

Since Justyne’s love affair with these curious little creatures began when she was a kid in the show ring, she also took advantage of some of the workshops offered in 4-H that taught students how to make value added products from their animals.

“When we met people that made cheese, that made butter, or the soaps and lotion, when we met all those people and went to those classes it was really really fun,” Justyne states.

The Nobles make several flavors of cheeses, including one of the most popular in Music City. It is called Nashville Hot Cheese.

“We kind of gave our own spin on the Nashville hot spice that goes on the chicken, that’s popular in Nashville these days,” Dustin adds. “We roll some of our chevre, which is our fresh goat cheese logs, in the Nashville hot chicken spice, and it’s become pretty popular.”

The Nobel’s sell their cheese at a number of middle Tennessee restaurants, but one of the most interesting places to get this unique cheesy product is at Culture and Company in Nashville. Where it actually comes to you on a conveyor belt.

They get cheeses from farms all over the country and even the world. They showcase this dairy delicacy by pairing it with all kinds of things like smoked honey or sun dried tomatoes to make the small plate complete.

“We really enjoy seeing our products on the menu at different restaurants and seeing what different places like to do with our cheese, whether it’s totally transforming it to a different menu item or maybe showcasing it on its own,” Dustin notes.