Cheese

My limited experience:

Solid blocks of aged Parmesan, Romano, Anejo, … and other low moisture cheeses seem to last the best in the heat.

The powdered versions don't keep near as well.

I wrap mine in layers of paper to absorb the oils that seep out in the heat.

Other cheeses can work well, but you may have to cut off the outside layer after a while if it starts to smells bad. Again, wrap with paper to keep it dry so it ages well in your pack.

P.S. And I just remembered, You can extend the shelf life by dipping in melted wax.
Or wrapping cheese in cheesecloth soaked in vinegar.

It is in the food section somewhere.

I always take Smoked Gouda or Robusto still in the wax. It will get soft over time esp if it is hot but it is still good to eat.

I've had some of the harder, older cheddars last over a week on the trail. I've had best luck with the wax-wrapped varieties…

There is a canned cheddar from Australia that is available in the US through survival suppliers: http://www.campingsurvival.com/redfecachch.html

The can is a little bigger than a tuna can and weighs about 8oz. Might be okay for a group outing– once you open it, you're back to square one. 8oz sounds like a lot of weight for one food type.

Minimuz.biz has a lot of mini packs of cheese products. Not all gourmet stuff, but some of it looks okay:

http://www.minimus.biz/Spreads.aspx

http://www.minimus.biz/Gourmet-Food.aspx?sortorder=6&page=2

Any hard cheese (parmesan, romano, aged cheddar, etc…). I dip single servings in beeswax and then vacuum pack them. The beeswax is excellent to use afterwards as a fire starter.

Beeswax can attract bears, but then again, so does tuna fish, honey, …

I imagine cheese attracts bears too…

beeswax wouldn't attract bears anymore than anything else…it doesn't have a huge smell/taste and honestly I'd much prefer it than paraffin ;-)

Those individually wrapped cheese sticks, either cheddar, jack or mozzarella last a really long time. I've carried them in my pack for like 10 days and eaten them. I like the idea of wax, though.

Yup. W/Piper. Individually-wrapped cheese sticks. They've lasted me 12 days + on the trail; if they get warm and a little oily, no worries. Just peel 'em out and eat!

When I thrued the AT, I carried out cheese at every resupply. I bought whatever was the least expensive, but my preferred variety was pepper jack. I had no problems with this lasting 4-5 days outside.

Manchego is great, wrapped in wax paper, or newspaper, and kept in the insulating jacket. Dry, fatty, salty cheese is rich hiker food. The jacket insulates against the heat. You can keep larger meat sausages like chorizo or fuet this way too.
cheers,
free

Thank you all for the feedback.