The email I got every week for years: Are you kosher yet?

For years, the same customer has emailed us every week with the same question. "Are you kosher yet?"

And every week, we wrote back the same answer. "Not yet, we're working on it." I'm sure they had our reply memorized.

Today, I get to write back something different: Rebel Cheese is now certified Kosher Pareve by KSA, Kosher Supervision of America.

Fred and I have wanted this since we opened. I didn't expect it to take years. Here's why it did.

We use a lot of unique ingredients. Each one is there for a reason, and they're not easy to replace. Kosher certification looks at every single one. So we'd work down the list, getting them signed off one by one.

More than once, we got to the bottom of the list and found one that didn't qualify. That sent us back to the drawing board. We'd find a replacement, then test it in batch after batch. If the flavor changed, or the texture, it was out and we started again.

Bryan ran this from start to finish. He chased down the paperwork behind every ingredient we use. When a box of coconut cream showed up with a label that didn't match its certificate, he caught it.

Then there was the kitchen itself. We stopped production for two days. The team scrubbed our kettles, then left them untouched for a full 24 hours before the rabbi arrived.

They stayed late with him, and every bowl, knife, and pair of tongs went into a kettle at a rolling boil. The oven ran at 550 degrees for an hour. We bought a new smoker and new racks for the cave.

There were days it all felt endless. But people are trusting that symbol with something that matters to them. We wanted to earn it the right way.

To the customer who emailed every week: thank you for your persistence and your patience. You kept us on the right track.

And to everyone else who asked and waited: thank you for sticking with us. I hope the cheese is worth the wait.

One more thing, because you've noticed the sales: Some of the cheese on our shelves was made before the rabbi's visit. It's the same recipe. But it was made before certification, so it isn't kosher and won't carry the symbol.

We need to sell through it before the certified cheese takes over. That's why we ran the $10 Brie sale this week. And it's why our Tomato Herb Fromage and Honee Pistachio Chèvre are $10 each through Tuesday. Both freeze well, so stock up.

Starting Friday, look for the KSA symbol on the package. If kosher matters to you, that symbol is how you'll know.

Warmly,

Kirsten,
Co-founder, Rebel Cheese

Shop the $10 Honee Pistachio Chèvre →

Shop the $10 Tomato Herb Fromage →