>Running out of rennet?! you mean in your stomach, or in manufacture? ;-)

If you hear me moo, then the former.

>If the latter, then there are perfectly satisfactory hard cheeses in the US wherever I've gone recently, which includes at least ten states.

Among them state of shock, and the state of denial. I'll believe it when I see it. And satisfactory is not what I was after. Before coming here, I thought our cheeses are somewhere between good and OK. Now I feel like that sandwich on cold turkey, getting myself off of cheese.

In at least three countries where I had the pleasure (make that at least six now - they multiplied like amoebas) it was not a matter of "perfectly satisfactory" and "at least ten places". It was "excellent" and "pretty much any grocery", now that I think of it.

> Some of it is imported from Europe if that makes a difference ;-) but there are also local producers doing a great job IMHO.

"You're doing a great job" is what you tell a kid who somehow managed to not completely mangle the homework, as an encouragement, in fear that they'll just give up trying.

>But then I suppose you know this very well and are simply seizing the opportunity to poke a stick? ;-)

It's not hard enough to be poked. And it doesn't need any stick, it sticks to the knife - equally yecchs as the bun which sticks to your teeth if you try to chew it (but why would you chew it - it's too soft for that).

Speaking of poking, 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous friend who knew very well where this was going, but just had to poke this wasp's nest :).