First taste of cheese

[Spike]

I just tasted my first hard cheese, a cheddar. It is only 5 weeks old, but there were some mold spots under the wax. Opened it up, cleaned, and put in a food saver bag fore more aging. Tasted like a mild cheddar. Very happy.

[hoeklijn]

Beautiful looking cheese! Did you use annatto? It has such a nice yellow color!

[Spike]

Yes, I think 1 tsp in 2 gallons of milk. Need to cut that back some. Also need to start writting stuff down.

[tnbquilt]

You definitely need to write stuff down during the make. Times and temperatures are very important. 6 months from now when you are tasting your cheese you can review your notes. It helps a lot in determining what might be causing a specific flavor, especially if you have another cheese to compare it to.

[shotski]

Did you use the cream wax under the red wax? I have only waxed 1 cheese so far ( Edam ) and used the cream wax first it has mold inhibitors in it.

I have read of issues under the red wax without the cream. Another way around this issue is to heat the wax to a higher temperature and while waxing hold the cheese in each position for a couple of seconds so the heat sterilises the surface as you go. 

[tnbquilt]

I use the yellow wax, so if you get mold you can see it and take care of it quickly. I don't put anything under the wax, and I rarely get mold underneath it, although I have a few times.

[KTownCheese]

A cheese to you on the cheddar!

[Spike]

Shotski - No cream wax under the red wax. I have only just read about using cream wax here on this board. I was unaware of it previously. Looks interesting. I did heat the wax to 240 F, and dipped and held for 6 seconds. Likely the temp of the wax had dropped by the time I waxed the sides.

tnbquilt - Just starting out I really liked the look of the red wax. Would agree that yellow would be more practical now. Could start mixing yellow with the red I have now. Bright orange?

KTownCheese - Thanks for the cheese!

[shotski]

A cheese to you for the very nice looking cheddar. It is very rewarding when you cut them open isn't it.

John

[Spike]

It was super rewarding for me. This one was actually my 4th make. Just opened it early due to the problem. This was the first one I had cut into, and I was very happy. Looked like cheese, smelled like cheese, and tasted like cheddar. It was all I could do to keep from breaking my arm patting myself on the back! 

Appreciate the cheese. Thanks Shotski.

[bbracken677]

Another cheese to you! Great looking cheese and excellent result for a 4th! Great appearance and nice looking texture...send me a piece to try haha

I think of all the cheeses I like the complexity and depth of flavor in cheddar that has been aged years.  I figure if I make enough of them sooner or later one may hang around long enough to reach the 3 or 4 year mark 

[Spike]

Wow, another cheese! Thanks bbracken667. I agree with you, I love sharp cheddar. My wife brought me back some 3 or 4 year old cheddar from the Amana Colonies in Iowa. It was great. About 15 years ago I picked up some Atomic Cheddar there. It was so sharp you could cut yourself with it. I thought it was great, but not likely everyone would.

I also hope to be able to age a cheddar that long. For the moment, just happy what I have made at least seems like cheese.