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Just wanted to say hello from Vancouver. Canada! I'm a newbie cheesemaker, having only started making cheese in March 2016.

I was inspired to start making cheese when I was in a local homebrew store and saw Ricki Carroll's book on the shelf. I though to myself, "Why have I never realized I could make my own cheese?" I immediately bought the book and it's been full curds ahead since then!

So far I have made queso blanco, fromage blanc, whole milk ricotta, 30-minute mozzarella and farmhouse Cheddar. The cheddar ended up tasting more like Cheshire but it was great. I'm keen to make it again (so are my friends!)

My main problem so far has been sourcing equipment in Vancouver. I seem to have exhausted the capabilities of the local homesteading stores, and have started ordering from New England Cheesemaking, although the lack of dollar parity is killing me.

I also just ordered a foldaway Sturdypress which I can't wait to try, as the Cheesypress I have right now is really not good enough.( The Cheesypress was the only press I could find in Vancouver.) And I am about to invest in a second hand wine fridge to use as a cave.

Can't wait to meet you all electronically. And if any of you are in Vancouver, please get in touch!

EDIT: Forgot to mention, I am also a journalist with Daily Hive (http://dailyhive.com), writing about all kinds of local news in Vancouver. Other interests include snowboarding, curling, hiking, homebrewing, feminism, travelling, movies and writing.

Welcome cheesehead! Greetings from Denmark.

Welcome to the forum, Jenni. I am confident that you will find this one of your most important cheesemaking resources.
Good luck with your cheeses.

Welcome, Jenni!

In addition to New England Cheese, there are quite a few other on-line sources for cheese cultures and supplies available in the US. A quick Google search seems to suggest that there may be several in Canada as well: https://www.google.com/search?client=ubuntu&channel=fs&q=cheese+cultures+canada&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

Unfortunately, not being in Canada, I can't give any first-hand report on any of these, but maybe some of our other Canadian participants will chime in with their favorite suppliers. And if you try any of these and have good (or bad) results, report them here - it will help someone else out down the road!

One suggestion: for your next cheese-making book, buy Gianaclis Caldwell's Mastering Artisan Cheesemaking - this book has done far more than any other to help me understand what is happening at each stage of the process, and how to vary it to get the results I want.

Hi Jenni, I get all my supplies from Glengary Cheesemaking Supplies here in Ontario, never a problem

Homesteaders Junction -  649 E Hastings St, Vancouver, BC V6A 1R2

Hi, welcome to the forum!  I think you'll like it here.  As I'm learning, I've found it comforting to be able to come here and post pics and have people who know what they're doing give their thoughts on my cheese. 

I'm also in Vancouver.  I have been making cheese since last Christmas.  I would second the recommendation for Glengarry, and there is also www.fromagex.ca, they're in Quebec.   I mostly tend to buy my cultures from Glengarry, and my molds from Fromagex.  Fromagex has a large selection of molds and the way they name and describe them makes it easier for a noob to choose something suitable, but a lot of their cultures seem to be in larger packs than the ones at Glengarry, and I don't make enough cheese to use them up.  Though they do seem to have a wider variety.