Cheese lovers, mark your calendars! On Saturday, October 3, the Little Falls Cheese Festival returns to Main Street in Little Falls, bringing together cheesemakers, food producers, and thousands of visitors for a day dedicated to one of New York’s favorite dairy products.
Held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the festival will feature more than 120 varieties of cheese alongside locally made foods, craft beverages, live music, and other New York-made products.
A New York Cheese Tradition
Little Falls has deep roots in New York’s dairy history. Located along the Erie Canal and surrounded by dairy country, the city became an important center of the cheese trade during the 19th century. From 1864 to 1870, Little Falls was home to the largest cheese market in the world.
The Little Falls Cheese Festival was launched in 2015 as a way to celebrate that history while supporting the farmers and cheesemakers carrying New York’s dairy traditions forward today.
The event has since grown into a major fall attraction. An estimated 16,000 people attended the festival in 2025, and this year, visitors can explore 65 New York-based vendors, nearly half of which are cheesemakers.
The 2026 lineup includes cheesemakers from across the state, such as Adirondack Cheese Company, Argyle Cheese Farmer, Chaseholm Farm Creamery, Eden Valley Creamery, Family Farmstead Dairy, Kriemhild Dairy, Shtayburne Farm Creamery, Sunset View Creamery, and many more.
Expand Your Cheese Knowledge
This year, festivalgoers can do more than sample their way down Main Street.
Taste New York Cheese will offer three guided tasting sessions at Rock City Centre, giving cheese enthusiasts an opportunity to learn more about what goes into the cheeses being made throughout the Empire State.
Each 60-minute session will be led by Mary Rizzo, proprietor and head cheesemonger of The Cheese Traveler in Albany. Through guided tastings, participants will explore the history, science, techniques, and craftsmanship behind different styles of cheese.
Guests can choose from three sessions:
New York Cheese: The Basics
Look at Those Rinds!
New York Is More Than Cheddar…But It’s Where We Began
Each class will feature a different selection of artisan cheeses from New York cheesemakers, with producers including Shtayburne Farm Creamery, Eden Valley Creamery, McGrath Cheese, Sugar House Creamery, 5 Spoke Creamery, Muranda Cheese Company, Belhurst Farm Creamery, Four Fat Fowl, Lively Run Dairy, Chaseholm Farm Creamery, Churchtown Dairy, Family Farms Creamery, Murray’s Cheese, Family Farmstead Dairy, Mecox Bay Dairy, Meier’s Artisan Cheese, Golden Age Cheese Company, and Adirondack Cheese Company.
With just 35 seats available per session, the tastings offer a more intimate way to experience the variety of cheeses produced across New York.
A portion of the proceeds will benefit the New York State Cheese Council and The Meeting of the Milkmaids, organizations working to support, educate, and connect members of the cheesemaking community.
Celebrate New York Cheesemakers
From fresh and creamy varieties to aged wheels with complex flavors, New York cheese reflects the diversity of the farms, milk, makers, and regions behind it.
The Little Falls Cheese Festival gives visitors the chance to experience that diversity in one place and, more importantly, to connect the cheese on their plates with the New Yorkers who make it.
Whether you arrive ready to fill a cooler with local favorites, want to learn something new at a guided tasting, or simply believe there’s no such thing as too much cheese, Little Falls is the place to be this October.
Little Falls Cheese Festival
Saturday, October 3, 2026
10 a.m.–5 p.m.
Main Street, Little Falls, NY
Visit the Little Falls Cheese Festival website for festival information and the complete 2026 vendor lineup.
