For the love of cheese

However, one dairy farm in the Highlands focuses solely on products produced from the milk of sheep.

Cressida and Michael McNamara are the owners of Pecora Dairy in Robertson, which they started up after they moved to the area in 2008.

Michael said they had always been interested in making cheese and yogurt.

"We had been looking for an agricultural enterprise to embark on, and the sheep cheese we've eaten before had been magnificent," he said.

Taking influences from sheep dairy products from France, the couple started learning about agricultural practices and the techniques behind making dairy products.

"We're one of the only cheeseries that milks their own milk," Cressida said.

"Our cheeses represent our property, sheep and environment.

"Our philosophy is to have clean, pure and sweet milk.

"We wanted a sustainable business, and we're making steps to be as environmentally light as possible."

The couple said sheep milk was denser than cow's milk, so no milk solids needed to be added, which raises the sugar level.

"Sheep milk sets thickly and is creamy, without having to add extra product," Michael said.

Their property runs Pure East Friesian sheep, which was originally a European breed.

"They need a lot of love and care, but they're highly producing animals," Cressida said.

"They have multiple births, about three-to-four lambs each year, and they need very good pasture.

"We chose the East Friesian breed as they are suited to the climate here, and we liked their temperament - they are a very calm animal."

Michael said the sheep were "like supreme athletes", as they don't carry much fat.

The sheep eat a variety of pastures, such as rye, clover, brassica and native pastures.

Cressida said their business was seasonal, and they let the lambs naturally wean themselves off their mothers.

"The lambs stay on the ewes for four weeks, then they get a six week break as they dry off," she said.

"During those four weeks, the lambs spend their nights with their mums, and during the day they have access to different sorts of feed."

The property milks between 100 to 150 ewes, depending on the season.

Cressida said they milked the ewes once a day, and left the lambs with the ewes each night to help stimulate milk production.

They aim to make cheese and yogurt every second or third day.

Michael said a typical day for the family would start as early as 5am.

"Our typical day would be to get up at 5 or 6am, set the batch pasteuriser to gently heat the milk, then have a break and prep the kids for school," he said.

"After the kids are dropped off, we get back and the milk is ready, so we start making cheeses throughout the morning.

"In the afternoon, we milk the sheep and grab the kids from the bus."

The couple's two children, aged 12 and 9, help muster the sheep, as the family don't use herding dogs.

"We want to be gentle with the sheep, and give them a less stressful environment," Michael said.

"The sheep are at a point where they trust us, it just doesn't work to make the sheep frightened.

"Most of the time, we call them and they come to us."

Pecora Dairy produces three types of cheese - Mezza, Bloomy White and Jamberoo Mountain Blue.

Michael said they used gentle techniques to make their cheeses, and they tended to be restrained in using cheese-makers 'tricks', such as mixing cultures.

"We specifically shy away from making cheeses with big, robust flavours - we like making delicate cheeses," he said.

"Our blue cheese isn't very aggressive, as the mould is only one element of the cheese."

Pecora Dairy supplies farmers markets and Harris Farm in Bowral. "We sell about a third of our product through farmers markets, another third through retailers such as Harris Farm, and the last third goes through restaurants in Sydney," Michael said.

"We supply to Harris Farm because we wanted to make it easy for people to find our products if they can't make it to a market.

"Being with a high-end retailer suits our brand, and the area is strong on support for local producers - it's a good fit for us."

The couple said they hoped to start making some of their cheese from raw milk, as the food standards have recently changed.

"We want to be among the first producers in NSW to do this," Michael said.

Learn more about Pecora Dairy at http://pecoradairy.com.au/