This is my first time smoking cheese, and my attempt is due largely to the many posts on the forum regarding successful cheese smoking. I have one 2-pound block of Costco mild cheddar, and two wedges of Costco Gouda for my first run. I've used only a small amount of cheese because I didn't want to risk ruining a large quantity of cheese.

. The cheese is loaded in the top rack, and I'm using pecan pucks. My plan was to smoke for three hours. The fact that I don't want to temperature to go much above 90F gives us an excuse to baby sit the smoker

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After loading the cheese into the smoker, it was time to have lunch (it was around 1pm my time). The sandwiches are made using
smoked corned beef that I made yesterday. My wife made the crusty European style bread, and the home made aioli containing mayo, pickles, horseradish, catsup, pickle juice, smoked paprika, sweet onion, and parsley.
Although you can't see it too well, the smoke is pouring out the top of the vent.
After an hour, the cheese began to develop color
At a little over two hours I decided to take the cheese out of the smoker because the temperature was climbing over 100F and I was concerned that they might melt. There were oily droplets that were sweating out of the cheese.
After a couple of hours cooling, the cheese was ready to seal using a Foodsaver. However, I could not resist and cut a chunk to taste. Although the smoke was strong, the cheese was delicious, and had a smoky taste that you cannot get from store-bought smoked cheese. I can't wait to age the cheese for a few weeks and see how it tastes.
Are the oily droplets a bad sign that I did something wrong? I'm thinking that I'll get the cold smoke accessory so I can reduce the heat in the main box a bit more.