Cheddar, as in Cheese

We went to the town of Cheddar, to see the cheese-making process. Cheddar cheese is named for cheddaring, an extra step in the process which was developed there.

Unpasteurized milk is heated and rennet is added. Once curds are formed, they are cut into cubes, and when the pH is right, the whey is drained off. Then the curds are shoveled into a cooling bin, allowed to set, and then the cheddaring begins. The mats of curds are cut and stacked so more whey drains off, then they are cut and stacked some more, until the stacks are about 4 blocks high.

It takes about 7 hours to make milk into cheese, and then it is aged. We watched a while, had lunch, and went back again to watch some more steps.Read more