# Extra Extra Sharp Cheddar... crystals? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 14, 2007, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065 "2007-04-14T04:37:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Whammo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8dc957/32.png) [@Whammo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whammo)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/1 "2007-04-14T04:37:17Z")
Last weekend I purchased a 5+ yo aged Cheddar, I absolutely love the ultra sharpness but something I really dont like is that it contains very small hard and crunchy bad tasting “crystals” in it. I am thinking that they are maybe Lactic Acid Crystals that have formed over time? Anyone else experience this? If so, how old can I go before these form do you think? ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/2 "2007-04-14T04:52:59Z")
**Whammo** , me boyo, let them form until they cut into your tongue. There is no such thing as “too sharp” cheese. ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/3 "2007-04-14T04:58:23Z")
_Five year old_ cheddar? :eek: :drools: ---
**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/4 "2007-04-14T05:09:50Z")
I’ve never run across crystals of anything in old cheddar (5-yr, 7-yr, whatever). Perhaps you should take it back. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/5 "2007-04-14T06:05:09Z")
[Characterization of a Lactobacillus strain producing white crystals on cheddar cheese.](http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=203125) ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/6 "2007-04-14T06:11:06Z")
Those crystals are considered a Good Thing in aged Parmesan cheese, and I’ve run across them in aged Cheddar as well. If you don’t care for them, you can send the cheese to me for proper handling. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/7 "2007-04-14T07:13:17Z")
Crystals in aged cheddar are usually calcium lactate. Aged goudas also can have these crystals. They aren’t toxic, and many people consider them a sign of a well-aged cheese. Why do you say the crystals are bad-tasting? They’re small and distributed throughout the cheese, so how can you distinguish their flavor from that of the rest of the cheese? ---
**Author:** ![chowder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@chowder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chowder)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/8 "2007-04-14T09:08:50Z")
[QUOTE=Alan Smithee] _Five year old_ cheddar? :eek: :drools: [/QUOTE] Drools along with you 😛 I bought some STRONG cheddar with cranberry during the week. Very tasty indeed ---
**Author:** ![FRDE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e68b1a/32.png) [@FRDE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FRDE)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 10:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/9 "2007-04-14T10:00:19Z")
Mmmm… best consumed with a robust red wine Even if it does not dissolve the crystals, it will make both wine and cheese taste mindblowing. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/10 "2007-04-14T12:48:39Z")
I wonder if there is a correlation between cheddar-crystal appreciators and brie-ammonia-rind afficianados. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/11 "2007-04-14T13:34:40Z")
Had the protein crystals in my 11 year old cheddar! Very yummy! ---
**Author:** ![daffyduck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ec9cab/32.png) [@daffyduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/daffyduck)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/12 "2007-04-14T14:24:02Z")
[QUOTE=Whammo] … how old can I go before these form do you think? [/QUOTE] According to this paper, [Cheese milk composition and calcium lactate crystals in Cheddar cheese](http://ift.confex.com/ift/2003/techprogram/paper_19604.htm), it depends. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/13 "2007-04-14T14:29:03Z")
Ooooh…a good, extra sharp, aged cheddar is worth its weight in gold. Hell, if I had the choice, I think I’d take the cheddar! ---
**Author:** ![Number](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/number/32/242_2.png) [@Number](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Number)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/14 "2007-04-14T14:34:12Z")
There was a [recent thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=414093) on this topic. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/15 "2007-04-14T14:47:35Z")
Just add me to the droolers. I love the crystals, but don’t usually find them in 5 year old cheddar, you are lucky. Usually they begin to appear in 7 year old cheddar, in my experience. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/16 "2007-04-14T14:59:04Z")
[QUOTE=August West] Just add me to the droolers. I love the crystals, but don’t usually find them in 5 year old cheddar, you are lucky. Usually they begin to appear in 7 year old cheddar, in my experience. [/QUOTE] Beechwood sells some 7 year old cheddar with the crunchy bits, I’ve discovered. The cheesemaster gave me a nice tour of the facility when I stopped there. Their 3 year old isn’t bad either, if still a little juvenile. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/17 "2007-04-14T20:00:38Z")
Trader Joe’s and Bristol Farms both have excellent aged cheeses. Two we’ve gotten recently that had crystals were a Dubliner age unknown and a Trentingrana aged 22 months (had that one last night, actually). Yummy. We have a lovely little cheese shop in Carmel, CA, that we visit every year. We usually spend at least an hour tasting! ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/18 "2007-04-14T23:14:19Z")
Where does one go to get such cheeses? Our Trader Joe’s is OK with cheese, but nothing like 5 YO cheddar. Can I get unpasturized cheese? I love cheese. I really love cheese. Those folks with the fresh ground parmesian at the Olive Garden would save a lot of bills on repetitive stress injuries if they just handed me a bucket of the cheap stuff. Not much into sharp cheddar, but maybe something good would change my mind. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/19 "2007-04-14T23:38:38Z")
[QUOTE=Christopher] Where does one go to get such cheeses? [/QUOTE] Why, at one of your local cheese factories, of course. What do you mean, you don’t have local cheese factories? I drive within a few miles of at least 4 small operations, and 3 larger factories which produce for supermarket chains. Well, one of the free-standing specialty cheese shops in your area should do, then. I have at least two that aren’t terribly out of my way. What?? ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2007, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065/20 "2007-04-15T00:00:59Z")
You can try our favorite [Carmel](http://www.cheeseshopcarmel.com/index.html) cheese shop- they ship! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extra-extra-sharp-cheddar-crystals/400065.md?page=2)