# My First Cheese Smoke w/ q-View!



## joopster (Mar 17, 2014)

I smoked a log of colby jack the other day.  About 3 hours in the smoke and then let rest for 18 hrs.  Wrapped in saran wrap and put in ziplocs and into the fridge.













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I bought some extra sharp, vermont sharp and some gouda today and it is currently on the smoker...













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## pc farmer (Mar 17, 2014)

Looks good man,  I love doing cheese.  3 hours seems just about right.


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## talan64 (Mar 17, 2014)

Looks great!!

I just smoked 2 lbs of Colby and 2 lbs of Pepper Jack, last week.  Vacuum sealed and mellowing out in the bottom of my garage fridge.  Next up for me is Swiss (for a friend) and Gouda.


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## davidhef88 (Mar 17, 2014)

That got some real nice color. Now the wait


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## joopster (Mar 17, 2014)

the longer i wait the better? right?


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## gone4nc (Mar 17, 2014)

Looks great. I just did six pounds last night for three hours with cherry pellets.


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## bertman (Mar 17, 2014)

Joopster said:


> the longer i wait the better? right?


Wait at least three weeks. And I haven't been doing this for long, but I've figured this out: Smoke some more right now. Because in three weeks, when you tear into the batch you are waiting on, you don't want to be three weeks away from enjoying more.


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## bad santa (Mar 17, 2014)

Nice looking cheese, I love smoked Gouda. Yes, the longer the wait the better, I have found that 3 weeks is the minimum wait for me. Open up and enjoy !

I do as bertman suggested, don't get caught having to wait 3 weeks before you can enjoy some more, also packaged into smaller portions makes it last a little longer....sometimes.


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## joopster (Mar 17, 2014)

This will give me about 4 lbs of cheese.  I will get some more in a week or two and do some more...


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## deuce (Mar 17, 2014)

Joopster said:


> the longer i wait the better? right?


I just pulled some Colby Jack out of the fridge a few days ago that I smoked 11 months ago and it was AMAZING!


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## joopster (Mar 17, 2014)

I want to wait 20 years on a couple cubes ;)


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## deuce (Mar 17, 2014)

Joopster said:


> I want to wait 20 years on a couple cubes ;)


Good Luck! I was only able to wait 11 months due to the fact that I accidentally buried it under some stuff I smoked a few months ago!


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## beef77 (Mar 17, 2014)

Looks awesome Joop


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## joopster (Mar 17, 2014)

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Resting for packaging tomorrow....


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## deuce (Mar 17, 2014)

Mighty fine lookin cheese!!


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## joopster (Mar 17, 2014)

In twenty years I am sure to enjoy it!


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## driedstick (Mar 19, 2014)

Looks great, nice job!!


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## olypenaaron (Apr 20, 2014)

The waiting is the hardest part - sounds like a good song. lol. I am cold smoking my first batch of cheeses today (tonight) and then I am going to Hawaii for 3 weeks - just because I KNOW I wouldn't wait to dig in!


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## joopster (Apr 20, 2014)

That gouda and extra sharp were excellent.  Waiting on my pepperjack at the moment..


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## duffman (Apr 21, 2014)

Looks great. Makes me crave some smoked cheese!


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## joopster (Apr 21, 2014)

Omg!


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## pc farmer (Apr 21, 2014)

Lol.   I just found some year old american cheese.  Had some tonight.

Hide some if you can.


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## driedstick (Apr 22, 2014)

Looks great ,,,, I agree with C Farmer,  HIDE IT!!!! HIDE IT NOW


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## mikemav (May 3, 2014)

All the samples in this thread look great! Picked up some 3 year aged cheddar and gouda at Costco for a run tomorrow. Cheese rookie, quick question: what is the downside to not waiting 3 weeks? Is it just too harsh too eat without the resting time? Proper way is to vac pack it, and then what, leave it in the fridge for 3 weeks, or what is the proper way? Is there a cheese smoking method sticky or some general guidelines to follow to read up on?


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## talan64 (May 4, 2014)

Mikemav said:


> All the samples in this thread look great! Picked up some 3 year aged cheddar and gouda at Costco for a run tomorrow. Cheese rookie, quick question: what is the downside to not waiting 3 weeks? Is it just too harsh too eat without the resting time? Proper way is to vac pack it, and then what, leave it in the fridge for 3 weeks, or what is the proper way? Is there a cheese smoking method sticky or some general guidelines to follow to read up on?


Not sure what the "proper" way to do it all is, but......

I noticed a BIG difference between the cheese I cut up after just a couple days, and the ones that sat in the fridge for a couple weeks.  The longer it sits, the deeper the smoke flavor penetrates and the more "mellow" the flavor.

I vacuum sealed the cheese right out of the smoke.  It was done and went straight into vacuum bags, then into the fridge.  My first batch is the one that was "too strong" when i cut it within 3 days.  The next batches I did, I've gotten great results and great reviews from everyone who has eaten it.  After that first batch I waited 1 full week before cutting into the first block.

Right now I have about 7 lbs sealed up in the bottom of the fridge, ready to cut anytime.


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## joopster (May 4, 2014)

I would wait but if  you can't wait then if the flavor is ok then just do it!

I do not have a vacuum sealer so I let sit out for about 24 hrs, wrap in saran wrap and throw it in a ziploc.  At some point I will purchase a vacuum sealer but this works well for now.

Just test it out with some cheap cheese - you will love it!


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## joopster (May 9, 2014)

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And yes, those are my tootsies.


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## knuckle47 (May 12, 2014)

The pictures in this thread could be used on menus....they look great!  The only problem hiding cheese is that. As long as it's in the fridge your ok.. It's a small are to hunt through...

. Lately, I walk into the garage to get something and have to back in the house to re-trace my thoughts ... Completely forgot what I needed and the harder I tried to figure it out...the further away the thoughts went.

just imagine 20 yrs?:biggrin:  the new owner will find a nice surprise


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## joopster (May 12, 2014)

I have probably 15 lbs. now in the fridge.  If I can keep the kids from the butterkase I will have some to eat in 10 years!!

And thanks for the compliments!


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## joopster (Nov 24, 2014)

Well it's all gone - been gone.  I am going to do much more this winter and hopefully hold on to some.

I did some baby swiss and pepperjack this weekend.

Plan to do another couple logs after I get back from deer camp.













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## pc farmer (Nov 24, 2014)

Yup, its cheese season.


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## driedstick (Nov 24, 2014)

Looks good - nice color and up tis the season, my fridge is getting full with cheese that I still need to smoke, just have to find the time. 

A full smoker is a happy smoker

DS


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## welshrarebit (Nov 24, 2014)

Sounds gouda to me!


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## olypenaaron (Nov 24, 2014)

Looks great! I just found some English Cheddar I smoked this past spring, and had vacuum sealed. We pulled it out about 2 months back, and what we didn't eat sat in the fridge in a gas permeable bag, so it dried out and hardened like a nice, smoky parm. Only it's not!


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