A customer asked: How long can I age my waxed cheese if it has spices or herbs in it, like chives or garlic, etc.?

Waxed Cheese

Jerri’s answer: Usually, those types of cheeses need to be eaten within six months. If you use irradiated seasonings, and if you scald the herbs and spices before adding them to the cheese, then you can age it longer.

 A customer asked: Why do I have to flip a waxed cheese over while it’s aging?

Jerri’s answer: Freshly made cheese continues to release small amounts of liquid (whey). Gravity draws the liquid downward, causing it to collect at the bottom where it sometimes leaks out from the underside of the cheese. Flipping the cheese over helps keep the whey from escaping, If you were to age a cheese without turning it over, all the whey would leak out the bottom and turn the cheese into rotten mush.

Freshly made cheese that has been waxed or preserved needs to be turned over every day for the first two weeks. Beginning with the third week, the cheese should be flipped approximately every other day for at least another two weeks. When aging a cheese beyond 30 days, most cheesemakers continue to turn the cheese over at least once a week.