The folks at Jasper Hill Farm are trying something new.

The makers of award-winning Bayley Hazen Blue and Winnimere want to create an Alpine-style cheese that will round out their offerings and help support a local, sustainable economy in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom.

The deadline has passed, and we've received over 160 applications to the 2012 tasting panel, from cheese lovers of every description. We're reading through them now, and should be contacting winners soon.

If you missed this year's deadline, don't worry—we'll be back next year with an all-new cheese to taste! In the meantime, keep your eyes peeled for reports from our tasting panelists, coming in late May.

All you need to be a taster is a love of cheese and a willingness to share your writing, photos and videos with our readers and the cheesemakers at Jasper Hill. You do not need to be an expert, but chefs, cheesemongers and other food people are welcome to apply!*

Our application process is now closed. We're picking tasting panelists right now.This invitation is open only to our newsletter subscribers.

How the tasting works:

Jasper Hill will deliver 3 or more samples of cheese (depending on how the creation process progresses) to panelists over the course of the next year.

You've got to be available to taste the cheese. If you're going to be out of the country for an extended period this year (~3 weeks or longer) please don't apply.

Panelists are asked to taste the cheeses and promptly record their impressions on our blog, and send detailed tasting notes to Jasper Hill.

Don't worry if you haven't ever attended an "official" tasting - we'll give you tips on how to taste cheese like a pro!

Read last year's Birth of a Cheese taster's notes to see what an entry looks like, and follow the evolution of Point Reyes Farmstead's new blue cheese, available this summer.

*Open to US residents only—getting cheese across international borders can be tricky! Also, if you're a professional cheesemaker, we'd ask that you not apply to be a taster. Instead, drop us a line and we'll see if we can feature your new cheese for next year's BoAC!