Julian and Dianne Benson founded Apostle Whey Cheese on their Cooriemungle dairy farm in October 2005.

The move came some 30 years after they bought their first dairy herd of 65 cows and was designed to diversify their income to help alleviate tough times in the dairy industry.

It was high risk at the time, but the rewards have far exceeded anything the Benson family dreamt of.

The family’s dairy herd has been bred to produce milk with high butterfat and protein levels, which is critical to the flavours they achieve with their cheeses.

Over the years they have won many national cheese awards, for five different varieties of cheese. Their trophy cabinet is testament to the high quality, paddock to plate, boutique operation they remain committed to today.

On the top shelf of the trophy cabinet is recognition of their brie (Southern Briez) as the best white mould cheese in Australia in 2019. The same cheese then went on to win gold at the International Cheese and Dairy Awards in Nantwich, England.

"The main secret to the success of our cheeses is the quality of our milk. Luke, our son, manages the farm now and his role in producing high-grade milk means we can make the quality of cheese that we do," Julian said.

Further expansion

After taking the cheese world by storm, The Benson family added Italian-style gelato ice cream and bottled full cream milk to their repertoire in 2016.

Within two years, Apostle Way Full Cream Milk had won a silver medal for its authentic pasteurised (non-homogenised) bottled milk at the Dairy Industry Association of Australia Awards.

"It's how milk is supposed to be, I think. The cream rises to the top and you just give it a quick shake to mix it again like we did when we were kids," Julian said.

"It is important to us that the quality of our milk is the real hero of all our products.

"We're farmers and animal lovers at heart and it brings me a lot of joy to tell our visitors how critical the welfare of our animals is to the quality of the products they enjoy."

Marketing the region

Apostle Whey Cheese has become a major tourism drawcard, with thousands of visitors making the 15-minute drive from the Twelve Apostles to their farm gate for a unique experience whereby they can see all aspects of the operation – from the cows being milked right through to the cheeses being hand made.

Cheese tastings are available every day of the year (except Christmas Day) with onsite sales and refreshments available while you enjoy the view over the farm.

In the months of March, April, July, August and September there are plenty of newborn calves to see as well, which is always a hit with young families in particular.

They are passionate advocates of artisan produce and love working with other like-minded businesses to progress the vitality of the Great South Coast region.