Cheese and Witchcraft at Sideshow Gallery in Chicago
Conjuring Cheese Pairings
Last night I taught a cheese and witchcraft class in my hometown Chicago. That might seem a little weird at first: how exactly does cheese relate to witchcraft? Obviously, cheese makes anything taste like magick, but the relationship between the two doesn’t stop there. Cheese also has a magickal history.
Throughout history, dairymaids were accused of witchcraft when their cows produced particularly abundant milk or their cheeses were wicked tasty. Others were accused of cursing their neighbor’s cheese production when their yields were poor or their cows went dry.
People have also used cheese in rituals and offerings as a symbol of prosperity. Some have read rind formations, as one would tea leaves. In Icelandic folklore, male cheesemakers would mark their wheels and send them off to maidens, who, upon eating it, would fall in love with them. And finally, cheese has long been paired with magickal herbs, fruits, and drinks and eaten with an intention to cast a spell.
The relation makes sense: there is something fundamentally magickal about cheese. The shapeshifting transformation from milk to curd appears miraculous. Cheese possesses the power to seduce us and leave us craving more. It puts us under a spell.
Here are 5 of the witchiest cheeses to spook up your Halloween cheese platter.
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