When it comes to Cougar Gold cheese, WSU students like to take it back to basics and stick with Cougar Gold Original, the flavor selected as Best Cougar Gold Cheese category of the Students Choice Awards.

Cougar Gold is sold all over, but most famously right here on campus at Ferdinand’s Ice Cream Shop.

“It’s a world-renowned cheese, sold on an international level and only produced here in Pullman,” said Jeff Gilliam, an employee at Ferdinand’s. “You never see canned cheese, but WSU has been doing it since the ‘20s. It allows the cheese to be aged for a year.”

Gilliam noted that the original Cougar Gold cheese makes up the vast majority of sales and tends to be the favorite of Ferdinand’s patrons.

Though only produced here on the Palouse, Cougar Gold can be ordered online and shipped to most locations most times of the year. Additionally, seasonal flavors are offered during certain times of the year.

The cheese is produced from milk gathered from cows on campus, and the entire operation by which the cheese is made can be observed by anyone on most days.

While Cougar Gold Original continues to be a crowd favorite, Gilliam urges students to branch out and try the wide variety of Cougar Gold Cheeses Ferdinand’s has to offer.

Reporting by Philip Grossenbacher