I’ve gotten into a cheese making mode lately. I started with some soft cheeses a few months ago. Fresh mozzarella, cream cheese, fromage blanc. Really enjoyed making the cheeses and quickly graduated to molded cheeses after Christmas (most of my gift list was cheese making equipment). So far I’ve made Colby, Parmesan, Gruyere, Coastal Blue, and Brew Curds. The Colby was ready to eat at 6 weeks, and we’ve been enjoying it for about a week now. The Brew Curds will be ready next week. The others are months out (Blue - about 2 months, Gruyere - about 6 to 8, Parmesan - the end of the year).
Yesterday I did a little test with a cheese trier on the Brew Curds. The cheese really picked up the flavor of the brew wash. I used a local hard cider (Tieton Cider Works - Yakima Valley Hopped Cider) for my wash. The cheese is cheddarish so I thought apple would be a fun flavor. Using a hopped cider gave me both apple and hops flavor in the cheese.
Now I’m wondering if a Riesling or Gewurztraminer might be a tasty wash to use. Has anyone here made cheese at home? Anyone do a washed curds? Anybody got an opinion they want to share?