About Us
Maplewood Wheelhouse is a place where people can find local, domestic, and international cheeses, charcuterie, and small-batch pairings.
Every product we offer has a unique story behind the producer who we proudly support.
Aaron Kirtz
Maplewood Wheelhouse was started by veteran cheese professional Aaron Kirtz. Aaron has worked at Forever Cheese in the Sales Manager role for well over a decade and oversees their relationships with Whole Foods, Wegman’s, Murray’s Cheese, King’s, Fresh Direct, as well as many other independent cheese/specialty food stores throughout the United States. He is a member of the Guilde de Fromage and the American Cheese Society.
Leigh Friend
Leigh came to The Wheelhouse full time in the spring of 2022 after being Pastry Chef and Fromager of Casellula, a cheese focused restaurant in NYC, for over a decade.
She is the author of Composing the Cheese Plate and has been a speaker at seminars for the American Cheese Society. You can listen to her talk cheese on Cutting the Curd podcast as well WFMU. She continues to educate people, young and mature, about the uniqueness of cheese and why it’s important in our lives today. You may see her at The General Store having cheese tastings and around town at local events.
