Oh My Gouda!

It finally happened! Some (I) said it couldn't happen, it wouldn't happen, but IT DID! I made cheese that tastes like...CHEESE! I don't know what to say. I didn't prepare a speech, I'm not ready.

Okay, did you know Gouda is actually pronounced gow-da? Funny, huh? It's probably just like that in your dictionary, too. Ever look it up? Me neither. Why would I? Everyone says it the same, Gouda (goo-da, 'cause it's so gooda). This is what happens when you spend any amount of time with someone from another country, you learn things. I learned that I've spent my whole life butchering the only Dutch word I ever knew. Forgive me if I sound obtuse, but I don't forsee any change either. I like my gooda.

Back to the cheese. Ahhh, my first successful cheese. What makes gouda different from other cheeses (that I've made, anwyay) is that it is a washed curd cheese. I suspect that this method is what has produced this marked difference in flavor and texture. It must be...there are no funny holes, no off smells, all yummy flavors. I've actually made one other washed curd cheese (Monterey Jack), and while it was one step closer to success than ones before it, it still wasn't good cheese. But the (so far) one success and one near-success are both produced in the washed curd method. Interesting.

Washing the curds actually lowers the acidity of the curd, making a softer, more mellow cheese. In the past, when my cheeses turned out the way they did, I couldn't pinpoint the cause of such faults. I searched for information hoping to learn something, anything, about what I could be doing wrong. Instead, I only found out that it could or couldn't be just about anything I did or didn't do. Hmm. But after this experience, I'm beginning to feel like I have a better understanding (no matter how small that may be) of the process. There is a relationship here, and I think it is pertaining to acidity.

While I am still too young a student in the world of cheese to know exactly what I think I'm talking about, and further have no idea how to use that information, I'm getting somewhere. In the meantime, I think I'll just work with these washed cheeses, see what I can continue to learn.

There is a smooth, moist and creamy texture to this cheese that was missing in those previous. Subtle but rich, slightly tangy aroma. Though I found a few holes within the cheese, it is nothing like the multitude of pin holes that I'd seen in the past. This cheese tastes good on its own. I don't have to turn it into something else. I don't have to alter it in any way. It is just good cheese. (Though we're not at damn good yet.)