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Thanks. I have greatly enjoyed learning the process at home. Even some of the early disappointments were enjoyable to some degree. I would strongly recommend starting with simple ones like cream cheese and goat cheese to get an idea for the process. Plus they don't require real aging so there is immediate gratification.

My cheese cave is just a tiny little mini-fridge I got for free from a friend. I use one of these to regulate the temp. You simply plug the fridge/freezer into it and based on your settings, it controls the power to the fridge. For humidity, just a glass of water in there is the best I can do.

Hi, welcome!
I recommend a little reading, your local library should have these books, https://gianacliscaldwell.com/books/ https://www.amazon.com/Home-Cheese-Making-Recipes-Homemade/dp/1580174647 , both are good to start with.
Gavin Webber's YouTube channel is excellent and shows many useful techniques.
If a local cheesmaker does day courses, they are really good for getting a feel for things, nothing like hands on ;)
Have fun!

If you're looking for books, I would really recommend "Mastering Artisan Cheesemaking" (http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Artisan-Cheesemaking-Home-Scale-Producers/dp/1603583327).

I have this book as well as "Artisan Cheese Making At Home" (http://www.amazon.com/Artisan-Cheese-Making-Home-World-Class/dp/1607740087).

I must say, I much prefer the former; it contains tons and tons of science that the second one doesn't get into. I don't think its abundance of information is crippling, though - I found it easy enough to skip over the parts that were too technical at first, starting out with some of the easier cheeses; but when I started understanding the basics, there was more in-depth material to look through.

Also, the recipes in the first book are more like general guidelines that help define the style of the cheese while affording you more creative control. The recipes in the second book are much more rigid and, I thought, less intuitively organized. (For example, in the first book, there is a section on white mold-ripened cheeses, which are all pretty similar in fundamental ways. In the second book, the cheeses are lumped into "Easy", "Intermediate", etc, which I don't find as useful an organizing principle.)

I have a bit of history with automatic stirrers, for the same reason...I'd rather do anything else than stir for ages, lol. Having an automatic stirring tool helps in everything from making fancy dulce de leches (my cow & goat-milk recipe takes 45 minutes of constant stirring!) to ice cream bases to reductions that take a long time to whatever else you don't want to stir for really long periods of time, like risottos or certain types of cheeses, yogurts, and other milk-based products.

For anyone looking for a turnkey solution, KitchenAid makes a gadget that does this (albeit for $400). It's called the KitchenAid MultiCooker with Stir Tower:

https://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-KMC4244CA-Candy-Apple-Multi-Cooker/dp/B00UL3K6VE

It worked pretty decently...I had one for about a year. My only real complaint was that the bowl size was only like 4 quarts. It did have a 12-hour timer though, which was nice. I ended up trading it out to another chef buddy for a different gadget & settled on the Gourmia GST210 Stiriffic automatic stirrer:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01GSLYSRK

It fits on my Instant Pot, with a bit of finagling. Unfortunately they don't appear to make them anymore, so you either have to go third-party Amazon or find one on eBay, Don't bother with the cheapo "Robo Stir" from "As Seen on TV" (sold under various brand names), that thing is complete junk & is totally weak. There is, however, an interesting model called the StirMATE for $60 on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/StirMATE®-Smart-Pot-Stirrer-Rechargeable/dp/B076HH4WZM/

Not sure if it would be strong enough or not for cheese-making, as the design looks pretty cheapo, but might be worth a shot...reviews look pretty decent!

That book is great and is where most of my recipes come from now, but for starting out I'd try this guy

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1615640096/ref=pd_aw_sims_6?pi=SL500_SY115

These are a little easier to follow and I think provide a better base for understanding than the artisan book, which I view as the step up "intermediate" guide. Both books are extremely helpful though

You need to read a real book about cheesemaking before you go any further. A lot of people consider Rikki Carroll's "Home Cheese Making" to be a bible for starting out in the process, and it's pretty simple to understand.

Here is the reality: incompetent cheesemaking can make you very, very sick. It requires holding milk at temperatures where pathogenic bacteria thrive and they can cause serious foodborne illness or, in certain circumstances, death. Especially since you are interested in aged cheeses, it is very important that you gain a basic understanding of how the process works chemically so that you can monitor your critical control points to prevent yourself getting sick. (You absolutely don't have to be a scientist or understand everything down on the molecular level, but you do need some basics.)

It is exciting to start out, but as a matter of safety and as a matter of you being able to make successful cheese, you should not be considering making any kind of ripened cheese yet if you don't even understand what the differences between rennet and culture are. You also want to get at least a minimal understanding of how you control specific bacteria, yeast and mold to influence your aging process, and what to look for when things go wrong. Dairy aging is not to be fucked with if you like your gastrointestinal system exactly the way it currently functions.

Grab a book and learn about how all the factors work together, and in the meantime try something low risk, such as a recipe for quark or queso fresco, that you will be eating the same day you make it.

Cool! Hope I didn't sound critical. Here are some recommendations I've gotten that look good so far:

Cheesemaking.com
http://amzn.com/B004CFAWPC

Recipe from http://www.amazon.ca/Mastering-Artisan-Cheesemaking-Home-Scale-Producers/dp/1603583327/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1426111672&sr=8-3&keywords=cheesemaking (not affiliate link)

I think it came out pretty well, not much you can tell from a photo I guess. Tastes good!

This is the only cheese I have made other than feta, I am brand new to this.

I also use a sous vide.

https://www.amazon.com/Sous-Vide-Supreme-Water-SVS10LS/dp/B003AYZIB4/ref=sr_1_15?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1498400205&sr=1-15&keywords=sous+vide

I use this one because I can put the milk right in it with no water bath needed. Works absolutely perfect.

https://www.amazon.com/Firebird-Thermoelectric-Operation-Chiller-Refrigerator/dp/B013CTHQV6/ref=sr_1_13?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1498400267&sr=1-13&keywords=wine+cooler

I also use a wine cooler like this to keep my cheeses. I can fit 4-5 cheeses on 1 shelf. I try to keep the grouped with with similar cheese so they don't cross contaminate any lingering molds or flavors.

Looking at your pot there's definitely going to be a delay due to the thickness of the pot.

I use a thin stainless steel hotel pan, and I wish I could find something that would transfer the heat faster. You may want to go and find the thinnest pot you can find for your setup or just get a hotel pan. If you get the hotel pan, don't forget to get a lid as well.

If you get a slightly heavier paper towel that can hang while wet you can hang it so that the bottom is in the water and use this behind it to speed up evaporation. Or any kind of fan blowing on the surface of the water will increase evaporation but blowing air through something wet will work better. It's basically an improvised humidifier.

I used this green one for my sous vide before,it works great. You can try one out.

If you're willing to spend some money, a meter is a lot more accurate and easier to read. Extech makes a decent entry level meter.

The issue with cutting cheeses is that they are often sticky and will grab the side of the blade. That's why wire works so well. I use a plastic cheese knife that has multiple wedges that works really well.

Similar to this one: The Cheese Knife OKP2 , The Cheese Knives with a Unique Patented Blade, Yellow https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B004XRH0FY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_tq2RDb4334NSQ

Just about any knife that has a way of reducing the surface area in contact with the cheese should do well.

you can also get pot stirrers on amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/StirMATE%C2%AE-Smart-Pot-Stirrer-Rechargeable/dp/B076HH4WZM

If it's waxed, it should be fine.

In the future, for natural-rind cheeses, you can use a "microwave rice cooker"-type tupperware thing, because they often come with racks to keep the cheese off the bottom.

I'm using one of these currently, because I already had it. Since it doesn't have a vent, I leave the top "almost" sealed. With a small bowl of water inside (with some cheap cheesecloth crumpled up in the water to aid in diffusion) the humidity stays right around 85%.

I put a hygrometer inside so I can check the humidity any time (and see a history of high and low temp and humidity).

They came with the containers i got for maturing.
https://www.amazon.de/Lock-HPL836-Multifunktionsbox-5l/dp/B0000AN4CV/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1509968964&sr=8-8&keywords=lock+and+lock

Campden tablets, 1 tab per 20 gallons.

Wine fridge is one way
I have a fridge with a temperature control plug( Inkbird Pre-Wired Dual Stage Digital Temperature Controller Outlet Thermostat 110V, 1100W Heating and Cooling for Fermentation Kegerator Heating Mat ect https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015E2UFGM?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf)
With a thing of water.

I am one day going to buy a humidity sensor

I'm a beginner, too, so take my opinion with a grain of salt, but I'm going to buy this book.

This is where I started, and there is an Artisan version too https://smile.amazon.com/Mastering-Basic-Cheesemaking-Fundamentals-Making/dp/0865718180

Oh damn. You have a lot of stuff. I would do something akin to a camembert or brie since you have P Candidum for the rind. Or a creamy Bleu with the Roquefort culture.

You can skim some of the cream off the top and make it into creme fraise and then make something called cream fraise brie.

I've got this book: https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Artisan-Cheesemaking-Home-Scale-Producers/dp/1603583327

and this book: https://www.amazon.com/Artisan-Cheese-Making-Home-World-Class/dp/1607740087/ref=pd_sbs_14_t_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=FE9XYH23F30GN46DCRTP

...at home. Do you want me to try to pull some bloomy rind recipes for you? Shoot me a PM. I'll be home later and can look for you. I don't mind doing a bit of transcribing or I can just take a picture of a couple recipes and send em your way.

Here's the book I started with: http://www.amazon.com/Home-Cheese-Making-Recipes-Homemade/dp/1580174647
I started with quest fresco.
Unfortunately, ultra pasteurized milk is the norm now & even though dairies are required to label it as such, I suspect they don't. I've had lots of problems with milk labeled as normal pasteurized so, if you don't live near a good dairy farm, you might want to try using goats milk or raw milk which is now available at some markets like Whole Foods.

Used the 2 day lancashire recipe from this, along with a few tweaks. I'm vac-packing instead of cloth-banding as recommended as I'm away for 3 weeks and don't want it to die :(