Happy New Year!
After a little bit of a wait, the day is finally here to crack this cheese. Upon cleaving it in two I notice that it is "chunking" off and spalling the same way an aged hard cheese might be expected to do. The paste is fairly dry with no signs of residual trapped whey that I have seen in some of my other earlier efforts. There are amino acid crystals scattered throughout the paste which also give the cheese some added character.
I picked up a chip and put it in my mouth. Nice salt level. A very slight tang, but not what I have tasted as acidic in some other cheeses. Its complex taste is a little nutty and maybe a little earthy, but not really mushroomy. The flavor draws me in, enticing me to enjoy the taste with a piece of fruit. The flavor lingers. There is a creaminess and mystery of character that makes me envision cows up on alpine slopes.
I have yet to taste a commercial Beaufort cheese, but we are in a new year so the future looks bright. My effort here gives me hope that I may be close to the style. If not, I still put this in the
success column. I sealed half the wheel to continue aging, along with some samplers to taste along the way, and a taste for my son to welcome the new year.
I bought raw milk yesterday to craft another cheese this weekend for next year.
-Boofer-
