• General Information about Cabot Products
• Cabot Product Care
• Cabot Products and your Diet
• Concerns

General Information

How is Cabot cheddar cheese made?
First, high quality cows' milk is gathered from Cabot's farmer-owners, pasteurized, and then poured into a temperature-controlled vat. A starter culture of lactic acid is added to the milk, which enables the milk to reach the proper acidity.

When the desired acidity is reached, a coagulating enzyme is added. In about 30 minutes the curd is formed, which is then cut, stirred, and pressed together. The pressed curds are formed into 42, 225, or 670 pound blocks of cheddar. The cheddar is aged, packaged, and then distributed for our consumers to enjoy.

How many gallons of milk are needed to make cheese and butter?
To make one pound of cheddar requires: 1.16 gallons of whole milk. To make one pound of butter requires: 2.47 gallons of whole milk.

How can cheddar be mild and sharp?
Age is the only difference between mild cheddar and sharp cheddar. The longer cheddar ages the sharper and more pronounced the flavor becomes.

What is the difference between Extra Sharp and Seriously Sharp Cheddar?
Good question. Extra Sharp Cheddar has a strong, smooth flavor that is reliable and consistent from batch to batch. This is something we do on purpose, and it is a customer favorite. With Extra Sharp, you know what you’re getting every time. Seriously Sharp is another story; it’s our “wild” cheddar. Its flavor is unpredictable, always earns a “puck,” and is usually sharper than Extra Sharp. It’s a wild card in cheese making. Seriously Sharp is a top of the line product that invites you to walk on the wild side, experiment with your taste buds, and treat yourself to a cheese sensation that differs from one batch to the next.

Why is some cheddar orange and some white?
All cheddar made from cows' milk is naturally white, the color of milk. Cheddar producers in New England, including Cabot cheddar made in Cabot, Vermont, traditionally provide cheddar without color additives. However, many cheese makers outside of New England continue to add coloring for appearance purposes.

Are Cabot products made with pasteurized milk?
All of Cabot's products are made from pasteurized milk. Pasteurization destroys undesirable pathogenic microorganisms, such as E. coli or Listeria.

What does Cabot do to ensure the proper treatment of its farmers’ herds?
Cabot and our parent cooperative, Agri-Mark, go to great lengths to ensure the safety, health, and happiness of our cattle. This not only benefits the animals that provide our livelihood, it results in a better quality product for the community at large. Almost all of our Board of Directors are active dairy farmers and members of the Cabot family. They all rely on each other to provide high quality, safe milk that is in turn converted to various world class cheeses and other dairy products, and they know you can only achieve top notch results if your cattle are healthy and happy. What exactly do we do?

Cabot has twenty field representatives who visit our farms every day. They test milk for bacteria count; they look at safety procedures on the farms; and they visually inspect the herds. They check feed and cattle diet, and they make sure there is no mistreatment of any animals. Not ever. We also work proactively to ensure a cruelty-free environment for our cattle, and our farmers enroll in a national cattle welfare certification program to ensure the humane treatment of our animals. To learn more, click here

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Product Care

What is the best way to store Cabot cheese?
Cabot cheese stored within a vacuum-sealed bag inside the refrigerator is ideal. However, consumers can remove the original wrapper and re-wrap the cheese with plastic wrap, placing the wrapped cheese inside an airtight bag in the refrigerator. This will provide the best assurance of quality.

Can I freeze Cabot cheeses?
We recommend that our cheeses not be frozen. Freezing our cheeses compromises the texture, typically resulting in extreme crumbling.

Can butter be stored at room temperature?
While unopened butter can be kept at room temperature, the American Butter Institute recommends always storing butter in the refrigerator at or below 40°F, or in the freezer, to ensure maximum quality and guard against spoiling.
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Cabot Products and your Diet

Can people with lactose intolerance enjoy Cabot cheeses?
All Cabot cheeses contain zero (0) grams of lactose. Eating any aged cheese should not affect those with lactose intolerance, regardless of how much is eaten, because lactose - the major carbohydrate of cheese - totally disappears within 3 to 4 weeks after the cheese is made. For more information, click here

Do Cabot products contain gluten?
All of Cabot's products are gluten-free. Any and all ingredients, anti-caking agents, etc. are researched and verified to be gluten-free. For more information, click here

What kind of rennet is used to make our cheeses?
Cabot utilizes a microbial-based enzyme that mimics animal rennet to manufacture ALL of our award-winning cheeses. The enzyme is added to the milk to coagulate it into curds and whey. All Cabot Cheeses are free of animal by-products including pig, poultry, eggs, and fish. We make our cheeses without any animal rennet, and Cabot Cheese is approved for vegetarians.

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Concerns

Why did my cheese mold before the sell-by date?
Cabot makes a completely natural cheese without preservatives or chemicals, thus surface mold is occasionally found on the cheese. Airtight packaging is generally a satisfactory means of preventing mold.

However, when the package seal is broken or otherwise compromised, air may enter the package and the chances of the cheese molding are greatly increased, regardless of the sell-by date. Simply trim off any surface mold, seal the cheese in fresh plastic wrap and store it in your refrigerator. Mold that grows on cheese is harmless.

Why is my cheddar so crumbly?
As natural cheddar ages, it typically becomes drier and more crumbly in texture. In extreme cases of crumbly cheddar, it is possible that the cheese was frozen, possibly in transit or in storage. The cheese is still fine for eating, melts well and works nicely to flavor your favorite recipes.

Why is my cheese wet?
For Cabot cheddar, as with all natural cheddars, it is common for a small amount of moisture to develop inside the package. In most cases this moisture will be minimal; however, there are circumstances where it may be quite noticeable.

In the case of more mature cheeses, the proteins in the cheese will give up moisture as they age in a process known as "synerisis". This is a natural consequence of the aging process and does not damage the cheese in any way. Rather, it allows the cheese to reach the next stage of maturity, that sharp crumbly texture so many cheese lovers seek. We recommend you simply wipe off any excessive moisture, wrap the cheese in fresh plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator.
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