In the woods north of Possession Point, a pasture overlooking Puget Sound is filled with Stan and Lynn Swanson’s sheep herd.

It’s the milk produced from that herd that results in the couple’s own artisan cheese, which is capturing the attention of foodie magazines and local chefs.

Glendale Shepherd is home to 60 milking sheep that graze the waterfront farm property throughout the year.

The land has been in the Swanson family for three generations. Stan’s parents bought the farm property in 1949.

In those early days, there were no roads to the property and the Swanson family typically reached it via boat. With no home built at the time, they would set up a campsite “Robinson Crusoe style” and camp out during summers, Stan Swanson said.

Much has changed since the late 1940s.

A farm now stands on the land, complete with a milking barn, a building to store cheese and a large residence, all overlooking Puget Sound.

“We love it here,” Lynn Swanson said.

“WE DIDN’T always make cheese, we started by accident pretty much. When I started milking sheep just to have milk, I instantly ended up with too much, said Lynn Swanson. “Then I started playing around with cheese and took a few classes.”

The Swansons obtained their Grade A Dairy license in 2011 and never looked back. While the farm operation remains small, the cheese was recognized by Food & Wine Magazine, which named the Swansons’ Island Brebis as one of the country’s top 13 cheeses.

Edible Seattle Magazine and Washington Tasting Room also published stories about the farm.

Award-winning Seattle chef Ethan Stowell’s restaurants carry Glendale Shepherd cheese, as does upscale Seattle restaurants Sitka and Spruce and Bar Ferdinand.

“KEEPING THINGS small makes it easier to maintain a level of control and produce good milk,” Lynn Swanson said. “Even on a very small level you have challenges with consistency. A characteristic of seasonal dairy is variation in the milk, but it’s something you have to accept.”

Glendale Shepherd is an animal welfare approved farmstead, and the proof is in the sheep. They lazily graze the pastures and wander the property’s forests. Their apparent happiness is reflected by the owners and the farm staff, who cheerfully go about the business of producing cheese.

“She (Lynn) makes a crazy assortment of cheeses and it’s remarkable how well she does these varieties of cheeses,” said Vincent Nattress, a chef on South Whidbey. “I don’t know anybody that produces the variety she produces. It’s incredible.”

“I do love it,” Lynn Swanson said. “You have to love your work, you have to find something you love and it makes life nice — that’s my philosophy.”

THE WALLS inside the storage room at Glendale Shepherd are lined with rows of aged, semisoft and creamy cheeses. Their Good Food Award-winning flagship cheese, Island Brebis, is a smooth and aromatic tomme cheese with a golden rind. The Brebis is aged six to 12 months.

Soft cheeses such as their White Cap, a surface ripened soft cheese that blends sweet and tart flavors, has won over many chefs. Glendale Shepherd’s Tallulah, a creamy soft ripened cheese with a washed rind, may be Swanson’s favorite. Or maybe she favors the Island Brebis; she can’t decide.

Swanson says it’s hard to choose a favorite when you like them all.

LYNN SWANSON said she and her husband are committed to sustainable agricultural practices.

Nattress said it isn’t just the quality of Glendale Shepherd’s cheese he likes, but also how the Swansons run their pastures. He said he knows the impact good conditions can have, not only on animals’ milk, but also on the quality of their meat.

“It’s not just the cheese, the lamb we get from them is amazing,” Nattress said. “If you think about all the pieces of the puzzle you need to have a complete puzzle on the island, having a quality dairy and lamb producer is an incredibly important link to that.”

Glendale Shepherd offers the public 90-minute farm tours and cheese tasting sessions. Reservations for tours Monday to Friday are required and cost $20.

The farm store and cheese tasting room are regularly open on Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information, visit http://glendaleshep herd.com/artisan-products