The unseasonably cool weather this week in the Sierras got me a little froggy so on a whim, I decided to try smoking cheese last night. After reading everyone's info here I decided to smoke for 3 hours over apple using my amazn tube smoker. Ambient temps were 77* when I started and 69* when finished. I was able to keep smoker temps below 80* for the most part by opening up vents and chimney all the way. I did have to open the door a couple times near the end.
Went with extra sharp cheddar, pepper jack, and Swiss. Wanted to do Gouda but everything was smoked Gouda where I went (kinda defeats the purpose).
Brought it to room temp then blocked it up.
Put it in smoker with some TBS (really thin based on this photo - trust me it was there).
Pulled after three hours and rested outside for an hour. Then put in beer fridge overnight.
Pretty happy with the way it turned out. Did a quick sample of each and didn't have the "ashtray" taste some have mentioned here. Could be due to the fruit wood and short smoke, or just dumb luck. Regardless I will vacuum seal it and age for a while before sampling again. Based on this result, I may try increasing the smoke time a bit on the next batch. And find that Gouda (wife's favorite)! Thanks for looking and all the information here that flattens the learning curve.
Went with extra sharp cheddar, pepper jack, and Swiss. Wanted to do Gouda but everything was smoked Gouda where I went (kinda defeats the purpose).
Brought it to room temp then blocked it up.
Put it in smoker with some TBS (really thin based on this photo - trust me it was there).
Pulled after three hours and rested outside for an hour. Then put in beer fridge overnight.
Pretty happy with the way it turned out. Did a quick sample of each and didn't have the "ashtray" taste some have mentioned here. Could be due to the fruit wood and short smoke, or just dumb luck. Regardless I will vacuum seal it and age for a while before sampling again. Based on this result, I may try increasing the smoke time a bit on the next batch. And find that Gouda (wife's favorite)! Thanks for looking and all the information here that flattens the learning curve.