[Redstreblo]

My mother and I have been talking and this came up in conversation. I constantly try to tell my family that white cheese and yellow cheese taste different. Galemp and my mom disagree. I don't think they are very different, but I can tell the difference in a blind taste test! When I asked mom why do they put food coloring in the cheese if it doesn't taste any different? and she answered why are M&Ms different colors?

I just cannot believe that cheese companies would change the color of a cheese just because. I have only seen cheddar cheese in a yellow and white forms, no other cheese has been dyed with food dye (that I am aware of). There must be a reason why, and I can taste it!

I am trying to win this with a popular vote! Can you prove my family or me wrong? What do you think?

I put Snuffleupagus as an option in this poll, however you can make two votes, so if you want to vote for Snuffles please use your other vote to make a serious vote thanks!

[redsniper]

There is a difference in color.

[Bobboau]

they, typically have very different tastes, but it has nothing to do with the color. the fact is that different cheeses were derived from other previously existing cheeses, and two cheese that were made from the same source will taste similar, they will also likely share similar aesthetic qualities, like color, even if those qualities have no effect on the taste.

[Klaustrophobia]

give them swiss and cheddar and see if they still think it's the same.

[Redstreblo]

Oops, maybe I should be more specific! Cheddar comes in white and yellow, and the question is does yellow Cheddar and white Cheddar taste any different?

*POLL RESET*

[BloodEagle]

XKCD: Always Applicable.

And yes, in my opinion, they do taste different from each other.

--------

and she answered why are M&Ms different colors?

Because the green ones make you randy. 

[General Battuta]

XKCD is a terrible webcomic but that one was only bad.

Nice job resetting the poll because you were LOSING (also the color makes no difference, there's probably just a confound)

[Mars]

I'm sure that the color can effect a taster's perception enough to make an appreciable difference, but probably not in a blind test.

[Flipside]

I've seen red Cheddar cheese as well.

It's mostly down to whether the colour is from process or dye. Cheddar is usually dyed, but different regions tend to make them in different colours to slightly different recipes, so white cheddar tends to be crumbly and dry, red cheddar tends to be softer, and yellow cheddar is quite smooth. That's not a general rule though, and I'll stress it's to do with the process, not the colouring

[Mongoose]

In terms of sharp cheddar, I've generally found that the yellow variety seems to have more "bite" than the white kind, though that may vary by brand.

[watsisname]

* watsisname votes for the first and third options just to be a dick

[StarSlayer]

I was working on some pithy one liner about the pure Aryan cheese and the Yellow Peril but it just didn't seem to come together to my satisfaction.

In lieu of a properly formed post assume I had made some witty comparison between cheddar and white power.

[General Battuta]

I was working on some pithy one liner about the pure Aryan cheese and the Yellow Peril but it just didn't seem to come together to my satisfaction.

In lieu of a properly formed post assume I had made some witty comparison between cheddar and white power.

I was working on this too but I couldn't get it together either.

[Sushi]

Oops, maybe I should be more specific! Cheddar comes in white and yellow, and the question is does yellow Cheddar and white Cheddar taste any different?

That depends. Are we talking about generic Safe-Mart cheddar blocks, or more "artisan" real cheddars like Dubliner?

In the former case, it probably depends on the brand, but it wouldn't surprise me if some of them were the same with more or less yellow food coloring. In the latter case... of COURSE they taste different.

[qazwsx]

I only get my cheese from small, locally based farms, while these could be called cheddar, due to the name not having a PDO, they aren't refered to as such. Having never seen a "white" cheddar, only yellow, red or orange, I can't comment on the difference in taste. What I can comment on though is that the more mature "cheddars" tend to be, the stronger and more acidic the taste seems to be.
One of the nicest cheeses I had was this relatively mild one from a farm in gloucestershire, they had infused the cheese with worcester sauce.

[karajorma]

One of the nicest cheeses I had was this relatively mild one from a farm in gloucestershire, they had infused the cheese with worcester sauce.

And the worst was from Worcestershire where they'd infused it with  Gloucester sauce?


I have to admit that the cheese you mention does sound like it would make killer cheese on toast.

[The E]

For realz.

[Jeff Vader]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casu_marzu

[ssmit132]

Oh yes, the famous maggot cheese...

[Rodo]

snuffy, sorry... I haven't tasted any of those so far, probably never will.