Couple questions about smoking cheese.

[georgie]

We are smoking our first cheeses. I don't want to sound dumb but do you vacuum seal the cheese immediately after taking them out of the smoker or do you leave them in the fridge for awhile?   I know this is going to be a trial & error process to see what cheese we like & what flavor of briquette. Any tips on the kinds of cheese & flavor you like would be appreciated. Thanks.

[Jim O]

I always let my cheese stand on the counter for a couple of hours before I vac seal. I always use hickory in my A MAZ N tube. We prefer semi to hard cheeses,but I'm it's strictly a matter of personal preference. Many folks use apple,maple or other flavours,but my "go to" flavour for everything is hickory. Like I said,personal preference.

[tskeeter]

I also let the cheese sit on the counter for an hour or so after smoking to allow it to come down to room temp before vacuum sealing the cheese.

Apple smoked Gouda is a favorite in our neighborhood.

[georgie]

Thanks for the tips. We used apple & we did four different types. They are now vac sealed & in the fridge. The only thing we did not do was leave it sit out long enough before we vac sealed it. I am so glad we found this forum. I am sure it will be a lot of trial & error when getting started.

[Jim O]

Forgot to mention - let is sit for about 4-5 weeks before tasting it. The longer the better !