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What makes cheddar cheese taste so good?

smithsonianmag.com

31–40 of 57 posts

Re: What makes cheddar cheese taste so good?

#31
post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> some of it even colored orange artificially (especially in the US) Which is really weird to me in the UK - Cheddar here (including stuff from the town of Cheddar!) is almost universally yellow.

When it's truly natural, it's an artifact of the grass the cows are eating. But additives are often used [1] [1] https://www.bonappetit.com/story/why-is-cheddar-cheese-orang...

[deleted]

Re: What makes cheddar cheese taste so good?

#32
post #9

Ah, but the important question is "WHICH cheddar cheese?" A lot of cheese is manufactured, some of it even colored orange artificially (especially in the US), which is labelled 'Cheddar' but in reality is nothing at all like a true cheddar. (And then of course, there are those tasteless pale, plastic rubbery sheets labelled 'Kraft Cheddar Slices'.)

That someone is even pointing this out should give most people in the US a cause for concern. Sadly most people in the US have no idea what real cheese or chocolate actually tastes like.

I dunno. Did you take a poll or something? There are tons of small local creameries and chocolatiers around.

Re: What makes cheddar cheese taste so good?

#33

Anyone have recommendations for some cheddar to try? I haven't eaten it in years since I discovered dubliner, which basically just seems like cheddar but more delicious to me, but I'm sure I'm just uninformed.

If you shop at Costco, try their aged Balderson cheddar - 2 years or older. Incredible! (Though that may be canada-only, I'm sure the US Costco carries something similarly great)

Re: What makes cheddar cheese taste so good?

#34
post #18

Ah, but the important question is "WHICH cheddar cheese?" A lot of cheese is manufactured, some of it even colored orange artificially (especially in the US), which is labelled 'Cheddar' but in reality is nothing at all like a true cheddar. (And then of course, there are those tasteless pale, plastic rubbery sheets labelled 'Kraft Cheddar Slices'.)

The exact wording on American Cheese packages matters quite a bit [1]. Some of the Kraft American cheese sub-categories, including this one, are actual cheese. [1] https://www.seriouseats.com/whats-really-in-american-cheese

Although I agree that Kraft cheese slices deserve quotation marks around “cheese”, I would argue that they are still the best option for one sandwich and one sandwich only, namely, a fried egg on a lightly toasted English muffin. An Egg McMuffin, in other words. No other cheese delivers that particular delicious flavour.

Re: What makes cheddar cheese taste so good?

#35

Ah, but the important question is "WHICH cheddar cheese?" A lot of cheese is manufactured, some of it even colored orange artificially (especially in the US), which is labelled 'Cheddar' but in reality is nothing at all like a true cheddar. (And then of course, there are those tasteless pale, plastic rubbery sheets labelled 'Kraft Cheddar Slices'.)

All orange cheese is artificially colored (even in the UK) and has been for centuries. It's mostly annatto now. Historically it was things like beet or carrot juice. Natural cheese at most has a yellowish color (like butter, though a lot of that is also colored -- and again has been for a very long time). "Cheddaring" is a process (most famously used in the Cheddar region of England, but not exclusive to there), refe…

Cheddar isn’t orange. You might be thinking of Red Leicester in the UK.

Having lived in the US, the cheddar there isn’t the same. I’d offer that I never had good cheese in the US outside of imported stuff.

Re: What makes cheddar cheese taste so good?

#36
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That someone is even pointing this out should give most people in the US a cause for concern. Sadly most people in the US have no idea what real cheese or chocolate actually tastes like.

> Sadly most people in the US have no idea what real cheese... Oh? Interesting. > An Italian academic has caused more than a stir after saying the recipe for carbonara is American and the only place in the world to find bona fide parmesan cheese nowadays is Wisconsin. > Alberto Grandi, a professor of food history at the University of Parma, made the remarks in an interview with the Financial Times. https://www.thegua…

Babcock Hall at UW is also like the world leading expert institution on dairy and cheese, too. (Try their ice cream, it's literal perfection from the ingredients to exact temperatures required to get the precise consistency)

Re: What makes cheddar cheese taste so good?

#37

Anyone have recommendations for some cheddar to try? I haven't eaten it in years since I discovered dubliner, which basically just seems like cheddar but more delicious to me, but I'm sure I'm just uninformed.

Montgomery's Cheddar, considered by many among the world's best; see, for example:

>The Big Cheese (Tour)

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/31/travel/cheese-tour-uk.htm...

https://archive.ph/7DXlp

.......................................

http://www.montgomeryscheese.co.uk/

https://www.cheese.com/montgomerys-cheddar/

https://www.nealsyarddairy.co.uk/products/montgomerys-chedda...

https://www.murrayscheese.com/dp/neal-s-yard-dairy-montgomer...

https://www.thecheeseshopofsalem.com/cheese/montgomerys-ched...

https://dibruno.com/montgomerys-farmhouse-cheddar/

https://www.formaggiokitchen.com/montgomery-s-cheddar

https://fairfieldcheese.com/products/montgomery-s-cheddar

https://stjamescheese.com/products/montgomerys-cheddar

https://www.zingermans.com/Product/montgomerys-english-farmh...

https://www.gourmetfoodworld.com/neals-yard-dairy-montgomery...

Re: What makes cheddar cheese taste so good?

#38

Anyone have recommendations for some cheddar to try? I haven't eaten it in years since I discovered dubliner, which basically just seems like cheddar but more delicious to me, but I'm sure I'm just uninformed.

Get yourself some Cougar Gold, it's amazing. Yeah, I know, "it's in a can" but it doesn't matter. In fact, get a couple of cans and shove some into the back of your fridge to age for a year or three and it becomes even more amazing! https://creamery.wsu.edu/cougar-cheese/flavors/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar_Gold_cheese

I'm sold on the can, that's great. Thanks!

Re: What makes cheddar cheese taste so good?

#39

Anyone have recommendations for some cheddar to try? I haven't eaten it in years since I discovered dubliner, which basically just seems like cheddar but more delicious to me, but I'm sure I'm just uninformed.

If you shop at Costco, try their aged Balderson cheddar - 2 years or older. Incredible! (Though that may be canada-only, I'm sure the US Costco carries something similarly great)

I get my dubliner at costco, I'll keep a lookout for this, thank you!

Re: What makes cheddar cheese taste so good?

#40
post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've never understood that. If someone were to hand you a glass of yellow milk, I'm guessing you wouldn't be too eager to drink it. I get that chocolate milk comes from brown cows, but I ain't ever seen a yellow cow. As an american with enough laps around the sun to have some experience, I'm constantly aghast with what we've allowed to happen to food.

> I get that chocolate milk comes from brown cows ... what?

They’ve been bred that way for over 100 years in the US.
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