About Us
The idea for Midnight Goat Farm and artisan cheese making quickly developed after taking a 2-hour class on the subject in the fall of 2010. After 25 years in technology, sitting inside behind a desk all day, I was ready for a change.
My wife, Karen, suggested I sign up for some classes through Access at CVU in Hinesburg to try out new ideas and find my new path. I’ve always loved cooking food and brewing beer, so I decided to try Cheese Making first. I came home that night after class and announced that I wanted to get some goats. Both of us being animal lovers, Karen quickly agreed.
I thoroughly researched everything I could find on running a small dairy farm in Vermont and making cheese from goat’s milk. I visited other goat dairy farms in the state and tried my hand at milking goats to make sure I was up for the task. I took over our home kitchen and experimented with batch sizes, ingredients, processes and tools. After a few months I was ready. It was time to get my own goats.
We started with just three pregnant French Alpine does - Shawna, Dawn and Nettie. Although a little nervous at first (both me and the goats), we quickly formed a strong bond. Goats are wonderful, intelligent animals. They know their names, come when they are called and all have their own voices and personalities. In the Spring of 2011 the three ladies gave birth and I started milking each day and making cheese for friends and family to taste and provide feedback. At the same time, we were kept busy building a Grade A Dairy and regulation cheese plant. Finally, we went through the permitting, testing, inspections and other licensing processes to be able to start selling our farmstead artisan cheeses in June 2012.
Although it’s been a lot of hard work and long days, I would not trade this new direction that we have taken. From our original ladies we had three more Alpine does - Una, Whoopie and Phyona. We also had a very sweet buck named Moose. Today we have Shawna from our original herd who oversees our current generation of ladies and a set of young bucks. The goats have become part of our family and are an endless source of joy and laughter. I spend much of my days with them, outside in the beautiful Vermont countryside. Not surprisingly, I do not miss being behind a desk at all.
Prior to 2015 we leased land and barn space as we were starting to figure out farming and cheese making. In 2015 we built our own farmstead on land which we purchased at the southern end of town. A couple years later we added vegetable gardens and a green house for year round growing. In 2020 we added rabbit raising to complement our goat herd, egg laying chickens and seasonal pigs.
After years selling at farmer's markets, grocery stores and co-ops, in 2018, we finally made it to our goal of exclusively selling our products directly to restaurants, caterers and to visitors of our farm. Unfortunately, the 2020 COVID pandemic blew up our sales model. In response we have diversified and now sell fluid milk to others who produce lovely products from it.
-Yves Gonnet
My wife, Karen, suggested I sign up for some classes through Access at CVU in Hinesburg to try out new ideas and find my new path. I’ve always loved cooking food and brewing beer, so I decided to try Cheese Making first. I came home that night after class and announced that I wanted to get some goats. Both of us being animal lovers, Karen quickly agreed.
I thoroughly researched everything I could find on running a small dairy farm in Vermont and making cheese from goat’s milk. I visited other goat dairy farms in the state and tried my hand at milking goats to make sure I was up for the task. I took over our home kitchen and experimented with batch sizes, ingredients, processes and tools. After a few months I was ready. It was time to get my own goats.
We started with just three pregnant French Alpine does - Shawna, Dawn and Nettie. Although a little nervous at first (both me and the goats), we quickly formed a strong bond. Goats are wonderful, intelligent animals. They know their names, come when they are called and all have their own voices and personalities. In the Spring of 2011 the three ladies gave birth and I started milking each day and making cheese for friends and family to taste and provide feedback. At the same time, we were kept busy building a Grade A Dairy and regulation cheese plant. Finally, we went through the permitting, testing, inspections and other licensing processes to be able to start selling our farmstead artisan cheeses in June 2012.
Although it’s been a lot of hard work and long days, I would not trade this new direction that we have taken. From our original ladies we had three more Alpine does - Una, Whoopie and Phyona. We also had a very sweet buck named Moose. Today we have Shawna from our original herd who oversees our current generation of ladies and a set of young bucks. The goats have become part of our family and are an endless source of joy and laughter. I spend much of my days with them, outside in the beautiful Vermont countryside. Not surprisingly, I do not miss being behind a desk at all.
Prior to 2015 we leased land and barn space as we were starting to figure out farming and cheese making. In 2015 we built our own farmstead on land which we purchased at the southern end of town. A couple years later we added vegetable gardens and a green house for year round growing. In 2020 we added rabbit raising to complement our goat herd, egg laying chickens and seasonal pigs.
After years selling at farmer's markets, grocery stores and co-ops, in 2018, we finally made it to our goal of exclusively selling our products directly to restaurants, caterers and to visitors of our farm. Unfortunately, the 2020 COVID pandemic blew up our sales model. In response we have diversified and now sell fluid milk to others who produce lovely products from it.
-Yves Gonnet
