Wheel of For-Churn

The cheese wheel suits many-a-purposes, downhill racing chief among them, but where did the form come from, and why has it endured?

The annual Gloucestershire Cooper’s Hill cheese race highlights a unique perk of cheese’s iconic round mold: its rollability.

But why is cheese round, anyway? It can’t just be because of rolling, right?

Actually, yes (kind of).

According to The Daily Meal, early cheese mongers began making cheese in wheel shapes because they were easier to transport. Instead of lugging heavy blocks to the market, they could roll their creations down the road. (Perhaps this is where the idea for a cheese “race” comes from?)

What’s more, the round mold is sturdier for the holding together of curd over a long period of time, and it allows for even cultivation and mold growth across the cheese. In a form with corners, mold can collect in the straight edges, seeing to the early breakdown and spoilage of the cheese.

The shape, then, is both a transportation practicality and a biological necessity for success within the cheesemaking process.

Still, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a wheel of cheese on display at a supermarket. Cheeses of modern-day American shopping are typically sold in small, packaged blocks. This is for ease of production and consumption — our stark lack of open-air cheese stands demands a lucrative alternative.

But are these plastic-wrapped blocks less authentic? More preserved? Not necessarily.

At Hoard’s Dairyman Farm Creamery, we don’t sell cheese by the wheel, but all of our cuts are just smaller versions of handmade wheels from cheesemakers in Wisconsin.

Processed American cheese like that of Kraft is made using a wholly different process. It’s a separate class entirely; it’s not lesser, but it is different. Not all blocks are created equal. Check labeling to determine if the cheese you’re purchasing is artisan or mass produced.

To check out Hoard’s Dairyman Farm Creamery’s cheese varieties, visit www.hoardscreamery.com.