Colby-Jack, or Co-jack/Cojack, is an American cheese made from Colby and Monterey Jack. It is classified as semi-hard in texture and is mild due to its two-week aging process. It is generally sold in a full-moon or a half-moon shape when it is young. The flavor of Colby-Jack is mild to mellow. Colby-Jack cheese is mainly produced in the states of Wisconsin and California. It is used in various dishes or as a topping to be melted. These dishes include burgers, pasta bakes, macaroni and cheese, casseroles and so on. It is predominantly used in the United States, and is not readily available internationally. Origin The name Colby-Jack comes from the combination of the names of the two kinds of cheese it is made from, Colby and Monterey Jack cheese. Colby cheese originates in Colby, Wisconsin, and was created by Joseph F. Steinwand in 1885. Monterey Jack cheese originates from Monterey, California, and was made by Mexican Franciscan Friars during the 1700s. Colby-Jack cheese was then processed by marbling the two kinds of cheese together. This process was first introduced in the same place Colby Cheese was made on its own. It was not made at a large scale until the 20th century when the cheese became more popular and moved out of Wisconsin to larger areas of America (See Factory manufacturing). Before it was made on a large scale, the small, wooden building in Wisconsin only made of cheese each day. At this time, Colby-Jack was pressed into a long-horn shape and dipped in wax. Ingredients and preparation Ingredients Colby-Jack is a marble cheese that is a mixture of Colby and Monterey Jack cheeses. Colby-Jack is a semi-soft American cheese that is made from pasteurised milk. Furthermore, the cheese contains cheese culture, salt, enzymes and annatto. Annatto is what gives the Colby component of Colby-Jack its orange color. Together the Colby-Jack becomes distinctly marbled with white and orange. The flavor of the individual cheeses used in the blend will determine how strong the final Colby-Jack will taste. List of ingredients Cheese curds Cheese/bacteria cultures Salt Pasteurised milk Annatto Enzymes Coagulant Sodium content The National Salt Reduction Initiative was proposed in 2009 to reduce the ratio of sodium in cheese to 1 g to 100 g. The baseline amount of sodium in 2009 of Colby-Jack was 668 mg of sodium to 100 g of cheese. By 2014 Colby-Jack was down