"Every day is a little hectic right now," says Tim Veldhuizen as he greets Faith, one of his older Dutch Belted cows, a rare breed in this country that can be recognized by its signature color pattern: black with a white belt, like a bovine Oreo cookie.
Faith is one of Tim Veldhuizen's eleven Dutch Belted cows. There are only about 350 of this type of cow in the United States.Among his establishments were Loveland eateries McGraff's, which is still open; the Fourth Street Chophouse ; and Cipoletti's, an Italian spot that is now a pub. He also had spots in Greeley and Arvada, and even opened an American-style restaurant called the Colorado Grill while living in Argentina, where his wife is from, for three and a half years.
After selling his eateries, he continued raising pigs and traveling the world."That's kind of my joy," he says. But he also found another passion. Across the driveway from the pen where the adult goats and sheep are housed is a small production room where the actual cheese-making happens, using very low-tech equipment. Currently, Veldhuizen is producing a Gruyere-like Rocky Mountain Alpine Cheese as well as Ticino, an Italian semi-hard cheese, Gouda and cheddar. The latter three are covered in wax, then all of the cheeses are aged in a cave lined with shelves that he dug out and built himself, just below the production room.
"Sheep dairying is even more difficult, because they only provide milk for eight to nine months, and quantities are low," he continues, explaining that because of the mad cow scare of the '80s, the importation of animal products has been limited for the last forty years, leading to a limited genetics pool."You need those animals coming in and genetic additions to keep improving your herd.