Cheese cave, milk and cookies bar planned at Utica bakery

UTICA, N.Y. — Changes including a milk and cookies “bar” and an artisanal cheese cave are coming to the historic Hemstrought’s Bakery under its current owner.

Dan Dowe, who is also executive chairman of Artisanal Premium Cheese, purchased Hemstrought’s in 2019. His plans will combine both businesses into the Utica location, which he also seeks to transform into a regional shipping hub for online sales.

“It’s going to be fun and exciting here,” Dowe says. Along with the location serving as a shipping hub and the addition the milk and cookies bar, the big piece of Dowe’s planned remodel of the 900 Oswego St. facility is the additional of a cheese cave.

Dowe has owned Artisanal, founded in New York City, since 2007. When the Hemstrought’s Bakery became available, the Utica native purchased it and decided the building was an ideal home base for both businesses.

The idea for the cheese cave came about after he filled a case at the bakery with some of Artisanal Cheese’s offerings.

“When I put the cheeses out front, it got a little buzz,” with local customers, he says. Artisanal already does a steady online business that he expects will only grow with the cheese cave.

Currently, Dowe has a walk-in cooler that he uses for the cheese-aging process that is integral to his business. Affinage, the French term that refers to caring for cheese as it ages, requires precise temperature and humidity controls. The current cooler gives Artisanal enough room to age about 100 distinct types of cheese, but only harder types of cheese can be aged in the cooler.

The cave will double the variety of cheeses Artisanal can age and allow the company to add softer cheeses. “This is going to allow us to get into more decadent cheese,” Dowe quips.

On the bakery side, Hemstrought’s purchased a used Bongard deck oven that will allow it to expand its line of bread products to include old world European breads including pumpernickel and rye, Dowe says. He also plans to launch an online business for par-baked loaves that customers can finish baking at home.

Dowe hopes to break ground by summer on the project, which he expects to cost between $500,000 and $600,000. Work will include reconfiguring the current retail area of the store to create one central entrance that leads to both a bakery retail space, the cheese cave, and a curated wine and spirits section.

To help fund the project, Dowe is offering an early ownership opportunity via a crowdfunding campaign on Mainvest.com. With prices starting at $500, investors can purchase ownership units in the company and will receive some treats like the bakery’s iconic Halfmoon cookies and a selection of cheeses. A $500 investment would provide 1/50th of a unit of ownership.

Dowe is hoping the campaign will generate about $1.5 million for the company, which he plans to take public. When the business goes public, those who invested via Mainvest will receive shares in the company.

He’s hoping the work will wrap up by Labor Day, in time for fall tourism and parent’s weekends at local colleges.

Currently, Dowe employs 29 people. With the new retail spaces, he expects to add about 10 more jobs. Once the fulfillment center is up and running, he expects total employment to be about 45.

He’s working on several partnerships he believes will boost sales for Artisanal, including Omaha Steaks, Wine.com, and Saranac to pair cheeses with their products in curated offerings. Dowe expects sales to increase from last year’s $2 million to about $6 million.

Chef Terrance Brennan founded Artisanal Premium Cheese (www.artisanalcheese.com) in the wine room of New York City restaurant Picholine.

Hemstrought’s was formed in 1920 by Harry B. Hemstrought who sold his half-moon cookies from a bakery on Genesee Street in Utica.