Black Mesa Ranch
Snowflake, Arizona, USA
Artisan Cheese
Nubian Goats
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Cheese and
Candy Information and Online Ordering Page
Featured pages on this site
Updated!
6/07: We have revamped our Ranch Workshop Packages!
In addition to our one and three-day cheese making and goat management workshops learn about our free open- house days and lodging accommodations.
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Award Winning Artisan Goat Cheeses
4 Awards 2005 ADGA National Competition
3 Awards 2004 ADGA National Competition
2 Awards 2005 ADGA National Competition
2 Awards 2004 ADGA National Competition
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Click here to read the online version of Kathryn's booklet
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This site last updated:
March 29, 2008
© 2000-2008 Black Mesa Ranch Inc. All Rights Reserved
Arizona Grown!
Sunday, June 01, 2003
Made coffee ice cream
Monday, June 02, 2003
Dairy work: got most of the interior doors hung and some of the hardware on. K sealed 75% of the grout upstairs before running out of sealer, pre-painted door case trim sticks, painted stairs (2nd coat), did touch-up yellow painting.
Anise has fever of 105 degrees at lunch time, but down to 103 at PM milking time.
Made vanilla and casata ice cream.
Tuesday, June 03, 2003
D to Showlow (trip from Hell): PO, Pepsi (several times), hardware, Wal-Mart (never, NEVER go again on the first week of the month or on a Friday!!)
Cooked for company for dinner all afternoon. They (Val and Chuck) were supposed to be here before 8PM. We called at 8:30. They had forgotten. They came over at 9:15, had dinner and left around midnight.
Appetizers for company (eventually)
Flooring for milking parlor was supposed to arrive today. It didn’t – big surprise!
Wednesday, June 04, 2003
Caught 2 out of 2 traps with mice in the veggie garden. Watered sunflowers and cane fruit, filled water tank.
Dairy: installed all lower level door trim and remaining hardware.
Dairy lower level and stairs
K worked very hard cleaning and buffing kitchen floor tiles! Nasty job! Worked on making a deal for a 20 gallon pasteurizer in Texas. INspector "Dairy Dan" being obtuse about the whole thing.
Made 1st Brie! Will test in about 30 days.
Thursday, June 05, 2003
Dairy work: Milk parlor vestibule, window, misc little carpentry stuff, exterior electric top out, installed last Troffer light in packaging room. K caulked and painted door trim, etc. Did final cleaning to kitchen/packaging room floor tile. Ordered new commercial frig for dairy. Probably finalized negotiations with Genemco for pasteurizer.
Garden: watered sunflowers at orchard. Prepped veggie seed beds for more carrots, beets, pumpkins, melons and corn. Caught 2 or 2 traps with mice overnight.
Perennial herb beds and annuals beds irrigation
Made 2nd Brie trial.
Friday, June 06, 2003
Watered sunflowers at orchard. Caught 1 of 2 mice in traps. Planted 3 hills of 3 melons, 3 hills of 3 pumpkins, plus infilled 6 seeds in older hills, planted about 50 corn plus a dozen infill in AM. PM planted 2 hills summer savory, 4 hills parsley, 3 hills purple ruffle basil, 10 feet of carrots.
At the orchard: some of the trees and grape vines
Dairy work: Installed 3 screen doors. K finished touch-up painting and cleaned desk unit and parlor. Brought up both commercial sinks and set them up, brought up 4 Stainless Steel tables and 2 wire shelf units that had to be built and set up. Reassembled and installed one office unit.
Starting to move things into the Dairy Kitchen
Got estimate for adding a solar array (#4) $3300 from Val U Solar.
Monday, June 09, 2003
Dairy: installed and hooked up 4-compartment sink in kitchen – went pretty well but one faucet leaks a lot and is too long to be practical.
To town: PO, McD’s lunch, feed store (12 goat chow right off the Purina truck to avoid bugs), bank.
Tuesday, June 10, 2003
Dairy work: Installed milk parlor subfloor, and are ready for laying the matting IF it ever shows up. The trucking company seems to have lost it.
Goats are going WAY far off on their walks to Woop-Woop and the far fence line.
Wednesday, June 11, 2003
Watered cane fruit. filled water tank.
Finished “dog chevre” started Brie (spores in milk method),
K’s laptop keyboard began malfunctioning after tech support, we ordered a new one ($40 including shipping).
Picked up a trash travel trailer from Denis’ property and gutted it at dump. Will set it up as an auxiliary goat house.
Are we officially "white trash" now?
Ordered new solar array from Val U Solar.
Finished and building and erected tomato cages (made from re-mesh): 16 total.
Thursday, June 12, 2003
Still trying to get milk parlor flooring delivered. It’s on some loading dock in Phoenix.
Friday, June 13, 2003
Flooring for milk parlor is supposed to finally arrive today – it’s been VERY delayed – but a screw up in billing and delivery kept it from happening (again). Now the trucker says he won’t come here because it's dirt roads – Primadonna truck driver!
Poured concrete stem wall for new garden gates.
Made gate plans and plans for 4 new milking stanchions. Did metal inventory and made lists of needed materials.
Saturday, June 14, 2003
Watered orchard. Filled water tank.
Worked on Vertex generator and chop saw – ordered parts mail order.
Squash bug problems already – Pyrethrum sprayed and BT’d lots of other stuff.
Sunday, June 15, 2003
Anise has scours. Made Cheddar cheese. Goofed off, read. Made biscuits.
Monday, June 16, 2003
Picked up milk parlor flooring form trucker at Concho and El Dorado.
Butchered 7 chickens and 7 rabbits. Separated cream and made ricotta.
K made final arrangements to go to Flagstaff tomorrow to see a doe we will probably be getting. Anise 99% better.
Tuesday, June 17, 2003
To Flagstaff: left at 8 AM, back by 5PM. Sam’s, Home Depot, BK lunch, Claudia’s to see and buy Jacob’s Pride Yo Flasher. Great quantity milker (4 gallons at peak?) but pain in the butt on stand.
Yo Flasher
D left garden irrigation on all day and ran us out of water (duh). Pumped a bunch in the evening. Water was orange outside, but running clear inside. Pressure pump seems fine.
Got notice from new Web Host – Khimaira that the domain transfer was almost done. We'll get to move our web site to their servers in next few days.
Wednesday, June 18, 2003
Hung out with Flash, the new goat, a bunch.
Finished filling water tank and irrigated cane fruit.
Started work on new garden gates: got main frames cut and welded.
Short but intense rain storm caught us away from the house with the windows open. Limited damage but K’s laptop computer got fully flooded. We attempting to dry it out but have little hope.
Got web site uploaded to new Web Host with new home page updates overnight. (‘cause it was suddenly off line with other servers).
Thursday, June 19, 2003
Goofy AM – things all screwy. Flash kicked over 95% of her milk. D messed up mozz, etc.
Good news: Haslett (insurance agent) says K’s water-damaged computer is covered by insurance (minus $500 deductable) so K ordered a new Dell Inspiron 8500.
Made mozz and finished 24 hour chevre.
New web site servers seem fine and site works OK.
Worked on repairing “new” goat trailer and getting it positioned and operational: went very smoothly (thank goodness).
Friday, June 20, 2003
D to Showlow: Pepsi, Wal-Mart, Hardware, gas, PO.
Made Mozz.
Saturday, June 21, 2003
Cheese cooler not working. Called Sears: repair guy will be out on Friday.
Watered orchard, filled water tank.
Worked on new garden gates.
Sunday, June 22, 2003
Set post for new solar array.
planted corn (3rd planting)
Monday, June 23, 2003
D to Phoenix at 4 Am back at 3 PM. Unloaded new commercial milk frig, etc. at dairy and got frig up and running. Still waiting on pan slide rack.
Tuesday, June 24, 2003
Made mozz.
Dairy work: installed milk parlor water heater and swing door jams and prepainted trim, shoe molding, and jam material. Worked on installing parlor floor: went well, 85% done.
Laying the milking parlor flooring
Cheese "cave" cooler seems to be working again( ??!)
Wednesday, June 25, 2003
Made mozz.