When does quality peak in a cheese destined for long aging? I’ve had 10-year-old Cheddar (awesome), 4-year-old Parmigiano Reggiano (underwhelming) and a cheese that spent 7 years in a can. (More on that soon.) More recently, I had the opportunity to taste Gouda at four different ages, an enlightening example of what can happen to this iconic Dutch cheese over time. Online merchant igourmet is now carrying these extra-aged wheels so you can duplicate my tasting at home. I’ve served the four cheeses, side by side, to several people now and have been surprised by the reactions, including my own.

Sold under the brand name Artikaas, the Goudas are aged by a large Dutch dairy enterprise created when two family firms merged in 2010. As far as I can tell from their website, large is an understatement. But it takes deep pockets to hold onto cheese for five years, given the attention and refrigerated space it demands and the delayed return on investment. Note how much smaller the wheels got over time; that’s costly, too.

According to the importer, the aged Goudas mature in different environments, with different temperatures and humidity levels, depending on when they are destined for release. Typically, cheese agers reserve their best batches for extended maturation because flaws tend to be magnified with time. But time also produces compelling changes in aroma and texture, as enzymes break down fat and protein and moisture evaporates. A wheel of Gouda, with its breathable polymer coating, evolves more slowly than an uncoated wheel of Gruyère, but it does evolve.

When does an aged Gouda provide maximum enjoyment? That’s a matter of taste, of course, but I pretty much assumed I would prefer the more mature samples. Not so, and other tasters (normal folks, not cheese professionals) preferred the younger wheels as well.

My notes:

8 months: Several tasters’ favorite. Super creamy, with aromas of pale caramel and the start of some crystallization. What’s so appealing is the plush creaminess and the sweet/salt balance.

18 months: Becoming more friable and waxy, with crystals not present in the younger cheese; hints of darker caramel and butterscotch with a fruity pineapple scent. Is this the perfect stage? It was my top choice.

36 months: Getting dryer, more brittle, intense, sharp, fudgy and candylike; a full-on butterscotch scent with whiskey notes; salt is more apparent; lots of crystalline crunch.

60 months: Controversial; nobody’s favorite; dry, brittle and hard; deep aromas of whiskey and butterscotch pudding; pronounced salt; so concentrated and intense, it is tiring after a bite or two; like eating a salted caramel.

Where does your palate land? My sense is that most people are going to be happier at the younger end of this range, but a comparative tasting is the only way to know.