Cold Smoking Cheese Temperatures

[zueth]

I am going to do some tillamook cheddar with apple this evening and have a few questions.

Is 2 hours about the right amount of smoke?

Is a cabinet temperature of 70-90 degrees ideal?

After smoking do you vacuum pack right away or do you let them sit in a zip lock in the fridge for a couple of days.

Is the minimum time to let them sit in the fridge 4 weeks before tasting?

[muebe]

Is 2 hours about the right amount of smoke? Yes

Is a cabinet temperature of 70-90 degrees ideal?I would say that 70 is the most ideal. 90F and above it starts to melt

After smoking do you vacuum pack right away or do you let them sit in a zip lock in the fridge for a couple of days.I vacuum pack right away. I let them sweat in the fridge for a 1/2 hour then wipe the moisture off of them before vac sealing. I also wrap each on in plastic wrap then vac seal

Is the minimum time to let them sit in the fridge 4 weeks before tasting?Yes. The longer you wait the more they mellow out and the better they taste

[pensrock]

Here are my answers, similar to muebe's.

Is 2 hours about the right amount of smoke?
I do 2-4 hours depending on the kind of cheese and kind of wood. I do not know what tillamook is so I would start off with two hours.

Is a cabinet temperature of 70-90 degrees ideal?
I like to keep my tower around 85-90 F unless doing a real soft cheese like Velveeta. I have never had cheese melt on me. I am using a PID to control temperature and am able to keep the temp +-1-2 degrees. It seems to me that the cheese takes on more color with higher temps. Not sure if the taste is any different.

After smoking do you vacuum pack right away or do you let them sit in a zip lock in the fridge for a couple of days.
I never vac pack my cheese unless I am sending it as a gift. I allow it to completely cool, pat dry if needed, wrap in plastic wrap, then put into a zip bag. I have cheese in my fridge about 1-1/2 years old and no signs of mold. It still tastes great!

Is the minimum time to let them sit in the fridge 4 weeks before tasting?
I would say yes four weeks is good, the longer the better. I have used cheese after only one week but it was smoked using wood chips and not Bradley pucks. I think it makes a difference. I cannot explain why but it seems to. Maybe the smoke is less concentrated?

Good luck and have fun.  :)

[zueth]

I would be smoking extra sharp cheddar and extra sharp white cheddar.

[ghost9mm]

Everything  muebe said to a T... :D

[pensrock]

cheddar is fine as long as you stay below 90 F. I like apple or hickory for cheese.

[OU812]

I find with the harder kind of cheese smokin at 80 to 85 F is ideal for me and the softer I like 70 F.

Cream cheese can handle 70 F without melting, just make sure you have it on a jerkey rack or something with a small mesh like that.

[Slamdunk]

I smoke Tillamook all the time, extra sharp cheddar and mild cheddar doing pretty much what you described. I like apple for the wood.  It's all good!

If you do some Swiss or other soft cheese you don't have to smoke as long.