First cheese smoke

[Tommy B]

This may be a goofy question but do you just buy the cheap blocks of cheese from a grocery store or do you buy some nicer stuff somewhere else?

[MikeRocksTheRed]

This may be a goofy question but do you just buy the cheap blocks of cheese from a grocery store or do you buy some nicer stuff somewhere else?

I just bought 2lb blocks of the safeway store brand cheese.

[Tommy B]

great that is what I was wondering... If I am going to cold smoke I better get to it before the Texas summer heat.

[brewtownbeatdown]

@MikeRocksTheRed
Kinda surprised you didn't smoke any of this:
I did my first cheese smoke 3 1/2 weeks ago w/ a brick of it, as an homage to you sir.
Put mine on cooling racks atop a tray of ice (tip I found in another post that might help you guys in the southwest).   


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[MikeRocksTheRed]

@brewtownbeatdown - LOL.  I'm really not the bacon fiend I pretend to be when lurking around you on the forums.  I do have at least 3 packs in the freezer at all times though.  I did use some trays of ice last time.  Ice was from the ice maker in the freezer.   Will probably freeze a few solid blocks of ice for the next smoke if it is warm.  I also had a bit of a problem getting my tube going and when I got it going it burned pretty quick.  I have some alcohol gel now to make it easier to get going and hopefully it will burn slower and cooler on my next attempt.

Have you tried any of the cheese you smoked 3 weeks ago yet?  You'll have to let me know what kind of cheese you liked best.  My favorite was hands down the pepper jack.

[brewtownbeatdown]

@MikeRocksTheRed - You might not think of yourself as a "bacon fiend", but that is the reputation you are now stuck with now.  You can't control what others perceive of you.  All my coworkers think I'm some kinda sexual deviant, because of one comment I said jokingly with a serious look on my face years ago. They ask me about crazy crap, like I'm the Urban Dictionary.  Btw, it was you that came up with bacon lube. Fiend!!!
Tray of solid ice probably the best method. Maybe some foil walls as high as the cheese blocks.
Waited til last Saturday. Tried them all. Like them all. I'm a Pepper Jack guy, no matter how it's finished & this is my favorite brand.
1. Pepper Jack
2. Cheddar Jack
3. Horseradish
4. Ghost Pepper
5. Bacon
6. Muenster
7. Colby
I prefer the taste of more dense (harder) cheeses, so that's probably why I put them in that order.   Have a brick of Salami for next smoke (probably gonna be even w/ Bacon since they are both American based). Thinking my top four will be the ones I smoke from now on, maybe even a Mozzarella here & there. 


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