Two Cheese of the Month subscription boxes are filled with artisinal cheeses and sides on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023 at Lucy’s Market in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Two Cheese of the Month subscription boxes are filled with artisinal cheeses and sides on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023 at Lucy’s Market in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

New month, new cheese

Lucy’s Market launches subscription box for monthly cheese selections

Though Lucy’s Market in Soldotna has since its inception carried cheese as a central pillar of its offering, a new Cheese of the Month subscription box that debuted this month will offer a new way to enjoy the dairy product.

Lucy’s carries and sells a variety of artisanal cheeses sourced from around the world, making it “one of only two true cheese shops in the entire state,” a point of pride for cheesemonger and co-owner Kelsey Shields, who says she’s affectionately known as “The Cheese Lady.”

Shields said that a subscription model, where she could craft a curated cheese experience, is something that she’s carried in the back of her mind for a long time. As a cheesemonger, she said that she’s knowledgeable about the “exquisite variety of flavor and experiences you can find.”

“For years,” she said. “Just kinda wondering if it would be something our community would bite on or not. I just hadn’t taken any action on it.”

When a regular customer approached her about making a set of cheese boxes for Christmas gifts, Shields got “exactly the inspiration I needed.”

So Cheese of the Month came together. On Friday morning, Shields was assembling January’s box — the debut of the program — for more than 20 subscribers. It contained three cheeses, two sides and a list of wines to pair — specifically including wines that can be purchased at local locations like Country Liquor in Kenai.

January’s theme is sheep’s milk. Shields said one of her goals for the subscription was helping people to try types of cheese they might not otherwise.

“America is very cow centric,” she explained. “That is not the case in the rest of the world. I really like introducing people to those flavors — the rainbow of flavors that exist outside cow milk.”

Of the three cheeses in January’s box, one is soft and tart, with a citrus hint; another is “technically a cheddar,” which should seem familiar but will also be unique because it isn’t made from cow milk; and the third is new to Lucy’s, a cheese from Spain with “a little bit of a bite,” she said.

“We’re trying, if we can pull it off, to have each box have something either exclusive or seasonal or introduce a cheese we’ve never sold here before,” Shields said. “Something special.”

New boxes with new themes will be distributed each month, with their contents a surprise to the subscriber.

Three subscription plans are available for purchase on the Lucy’s Market website, including three-month, six-month and 12-month plans.

Shields said that to get in on the next month, subscribers need to buy in before the 15th day of the prior month, meaning that those interested in getting in on February’s Cheese of the Month need to sign up by Jan. 15.

Those with questions about Cheese of the Month or about cheese at Lucy’s Market are encouraged to simply ask, Shields said.

“We love to talk cheese; we are here to serve you cheese. Don’t be shy, even if we’re busy. Don’t ever feel bad taking our time asking about cheese.”

Find more information about Lucy’s Market on social media or at lucysalaska.com, where orders can also be placed and subscriptions to Cheese of the Month are available.

Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.

Kelsey Shields picks up a filled and sealed Cheese of the Month subscription box on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023 at Lucy’s Market in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Kelsey Shields picks up a filled and sealed Cheese of the Month subscription box on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023 at Lucy’s Market in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Artisanal cheeses are on display on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023 at Lucy’s Market in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Artisanal cheeses are on display on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023 at Lucy’s Market in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Kelsey Shields applies a “Lucy’s Market” sticker to a Cheese of the Month subscription box on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023 at Lucy’s Market in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Kelsey Shields applies a “Lucy’s Market” sticker to a Cheese of the Month subscription box on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023 at Lucy’s Market in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

More in News

Samantha Springer, left, and Michelle Walker stand in the lobby of the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center on Wednesday, March 22, 2023, in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Springer named new head of Kenai chamber

Springer, who was raised in Anchorage, said she’s lived on the Kenai Peninsula since 2021

Forever Dance performers rehearse “Storytellers” on Wednesday, March 22, 2023, at the Renee C. Henderson Auditorium in Kenai, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
‘Storytellers’ weave tales with their feet

Dance and literature intersect in latest Forever Dance showcase

Soldotna City Hall is photographed on Wednesday, June 24, 2021, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Soldotna OKs donation of portable shower, restroom facilities to homelessness coalition

The city purchased the portable restroom and shower trailer for about $182,000 in October 2020

The Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation building is seen in Juneau, Alaska, in March 2022. The deadline for the permanent fund dividend is coming up fast, landing on March 31, 2023. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire)
PFD application deadline is next week; state revenue forecasts lower than expected

Alaska North Slope crude oil was estimated to be about $71.62 per barrel on Monday

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
COVID-19: Cases jump in Kenai Peninsula Borough

No hospitalizations were reported in the Gulf Coast region

The Challenger Learning Center is seen in Kenai, Alaska, on Sept. 10, 2020. (Peninsula Clarion file)
Transportation gaps to be the focus of community meeting

The goal is to create a task force who can regularly meet and move forward on the issue

Bob Schroeder takes an electric chainsaw to a mock credit card during a protest outside the Wells Fargo in downtown Juneau at midday Tuesday. Schroeder cut up three mock credit cards representing three banks in Juneau protesters say are leading funders of fossil fuel development projects. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Protesters object to banks financing fossil fuel projects

Demonstrators used chain saw to cut up giant credit cards

The members of Sankofa Dance Theater Alaska perform for a crowd of students during an opening performance at Kaleidoscope School of Arts and Science in Kenai, Alaska on Monday, March 20, 2023. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Uniting through movement

Kaleidoscope students learn about western African dances and music with in-residence artists

A blizzard warning is issued for the Eastern Kenai Peninsula and beyond by the National Weather Service on Tuesday, March 21, 2023. (Screenshot)
Blizzard warning issued for Seward, Turnagain Pass

Snow accumulation is predicted to be from 7 to 20 inches

Most Read