OK, will in preparing for the use of my new cave, I have decided to open all my bandaged cheese.
It really was interesting to work with something so incredibly nasty, but then to have it yield such pristine goodness inside. this cheese, while young, was incredible.
Mild cheddar, not sour, not bitter, creamy. just perfect. Melted in your mouth.
But, I failed to achieve a completely closed curd.
While it is more closed than usual, it is not a perfectly knitted block of cheese. It seams that shear pressure is not the answer to a completely closed curd.
I have more research to do. I am considering vacuum pressing, although I am at a complete and udder loss as to how to approach it.