Tilsit (spp?) brick cheese

[pjbear05]

  Has anybody tried this on a pizza (or even heard about it)?

Not being able to find Wisconsin Brick locally, I asked someone at Whole Foods, and they mentioned a Tilsit Brick that is made for release in August to coincide with American Artisan Cheese month.

I might want to try mixing this with whole milk mozz ona pizza.

Any comments?  Thanks.

[Serpentelli]

I just recieved this 5 lb block of Widmer's Brick Cheese. It has quite an "odor" to it; one that I cannot identify precisely not being a cheese-o-phile. I also picked up a 1 lb piece of Kirkland Signature Lake Country Cheese yesterday while at Costco.

I plan on comparing the two cheeses on some DS pizzas over the weekend.

John K

[TXCraig1]

I just recieved this 5 lb block of Widmer's Brick Cheese. It has quite an "odor" to it; one that I cannot identify precisely not being a cheese-o-phile. I also picked up a 1 lb piece of Kirkland Signature Lake Country Cheese yesterday while at Costco.

I plan on comparing the two cheeses on some DS pizzas over the weekend.

John K

That washed-rind version is a direct descendant of Limburger.

[norma427]

I just recieved this 5 lb block of Widmer's Brick Cheese. It has quite an "odor" to it; one that I cannot identify precisely not being a cheese-o-phile. I also picked up a 1 lb piece of Kirkland Signature Lake Country Cheese yesterday while at Costco.

I plan on comparing the two cheeses on some DS pizzas over the weekend.

John K

John,

The brick cheese you got from Widmer's is the aged brick cheese.  I also have some of the Widmer's aged brick cheese.  Jeff also sent me another aged brick cheese.  I didn't use half of the aged brick and half of regular mozzarella.  To me that mixture would have been too strong.  I only used a small portion of the aged brick cheese with a blend of mozzarella.  Aged brick cheese is very strong tasting.  Just taste a piece.

Widmer's does carry milder brick cheese, which I thought was very good on a DS pizza.  It is a little more yellow in color than mozzarella though.

Norma

[Serpentelli]

Norma,

As usual, you AMAZE me. Thanks for the heads up on the flavor profile! I was planning on using the brick around the edges for its supposed caramelization properties. I will tatse it before I throw it on the pie but I hear that it is "less pungent" after it bakes, no? Do you find that the flavor is too strong even after baking?

Thanks!

John K

[norma427]

Norma,

Thanks for the heads up on the flavor profile! I was planning on using the brick around the edges for its supposed caramelization properties. I will tatse it before I throw it on the pie but I hear that it is "less pungent" after it bakes, no? Do you find that the flavor is too strong even after baking?

Thanks!

John K

John,

I would not have know about the aged brick cheese if I didn’t get some from Jeff and also some from Widmer’s.  I don’t know what your tastes in cheeses are, but the aged brick cheese would have been too strong for my tastes and Steve’s (Ev) tastes if I would have put it all around the edges.  I only grated a little of the aged brick cheese into the other cheeses and it was strong enough for me after the bake.  I could taste it even if there was small amount in the blend.  I tried an experiment just with a blend of mozzrellas in a DS and the edges did still caramelize, but the taste wasn’t the same as when using mild brick or mild white cheddar on the edges.

Give it a taste first before you use all aged brick on the edges.  Mine didn’t get milder after the bake.

I will be interested in hearing how you like the aged Widmer’s cheese on a DS pizza.

Norma

[Serpentelli]

Norma,

Oh boy, it sounds like I might have enough brick cheese to last until 2019!

John K

[tinroofrusted]

I was able to get some Widmer brick cheese not long ago when I tried my hand at Detroit style pizza. I was quite taken with it.  It has a very distinctive (and strong!) aroma that seems to really develop beautifully in the oven.  And from my reading its seems that Widmer is the only producer that really is doing an authentic brick cheese, so you have the good stuff there. Enjoy! 

[norma427]

John,

I am sorry I replied wrong in my other posts to you.  I only tried the Weyauwega brick cheeses from jeff v and the aged Weyauwega brick cheese is what I thought was strong  The tiny amount I used on my Buddy’s clone tasted good after the baked.  This is the photos of the Weyauwega brick cheeses that jeff v send me at Reply 942 http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,21559.msg229744.html#msg229744 Jeff replied to me at Reply 975 http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,21559.msg229908.html#msg229908 that if I am not a fan of stinky cheese the aged Weyauwega brick cheese might not be the best for pizza cheese.  Jeff also replied at 978 http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,21559.msg229945.html#msg229945 it really wasn’t his cup of tea plain.

At Reply 1108 http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,21559.msg231117.html#msg231117 is when I posted the pictures of the two brick cheeses Joe Widmer sent me.  I tried the Widmer’s mild brick cheese at Reply 1186 (second photo and pictures after that) http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,21559.msg232173.html#msg232173

After finding all those links, I recall I never even opened the Widmer’s aged brick cheese and tasted it.  That is why I am sorry because I really haven’t even smelled the Widmer’s aged brick cheese yet.

TinRoofRusted post helped me to recall that I didn’t even test the Widmer’s aged brick cheese.   

Best of luck with your Detroit style pizza with the Widmer’s aged brick cheese. 

Norma

[Serpentelli]

Norma and TinRR,

Thanks for the diligence! And I promise to give you my (uneducated) evaluation of this cheese both pre and post bake. Had no idea that there were degrees of mildness for this cheese.

I am glad to hear that the cheese developed nicely in the oven.

Thanks again!

John K

[TXCraig1]

Had no idea that there were degrees of mildness for this cheese.

It's not degrees of mildness per se. Rather the standards for brick cheese only specify the fat and moisture content but not whether it is surface ripened (or not) - this means you get two very different cheeses with the same name.

I wasn't kidding when I wrote above that the brick you have is a direct descendant of Limburger - it absolutely is. The same bacteria is used on the surface ripened version. Brick basically started out as Limburger made with dryer curd. I think the milder version probably came about because it is less time consuming and less expensive to make - more conducive to factory production.

[norma427]

It's not degrees of mildness per se. Rather the standards for brick cheese only specify the fat and moisture content but not whether it is surface ripened (or not) - this means you get two very different cheeses with the same name.

I wasn't kidding when I wrote above that the brick you have is a direct descendant of Limburger - it absolutely is. The same bacteria is used on the surface ripened version. Brick basically started out as Limburger made with dryer curd. I think the milder version probably came about because it is less time consuming and less expensive to make - more conducive to factory production.

+1

Norma

[Pete-zza]

It's not degrees of mildness per se. Rather the standards for brick cheese only specify the fat and moisture content but not whether it is surface ripened (or not) - this means you get two very different cheeses with the same name.

I discovered these things when I was trying to determine whether Buddy's was using the surface ripened version of the brick cheese. My suspicion was no but I found what you reported at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brick_cheese.

Peter