quote:Originally posted by Idaho Mike:
Mr. T:
I did pepper jack, vintage aged white cheddar, and gouda. I put the A-Maze-n Tube on the heating elements of the smoker, but didn't start the CookShack. I will do some more later in the year. I will put a pan of ice between the heat source and the cheese next time. All of the cheese picked up good color, and plenty of smoke flavor.
Mike, congratulations on your smoked cheese quest.
If you would consider using a collector modification on top of your 045, the 045 would then act as a heat sink. You would then benefit from getting a cooler and what I call a much cleaner and smoother smoke. That would then increase your time to smoke.
The ice in the smoker can be a double-edged sword. It will indeed cool the air, but by doing so, the moisture may increase causing your cheese to sweat even more.
It sounds as if you are smoking to a desired color rather than time. That is something that I wholeheartedly support as conditions can change making timing difficult. I just smoked and waxed some 4-year-old cheddar for this year's Christmas gifts for 20 hours. Using a very light blue smoke from a remote iron stove, the result was a very desirable flavor the next day with no bitterness at all.
Enjoy your cheese and show us some pics of your results.
Tom