Where you might be disappointed is if you like "extra mature" British cheddar, which is not really equivalent to "extra sharp" American cheddar. Personally I find both unappealing.
For cheddar specifically, yes, I'd hesitate to buy anything younger, and if I had to I'd only use it in cooking.
Maybe that partly explains my experience/surprise, but a sibling comment shows photos which though not close-up seem much more like what I 'expected', or rather was surprised to notice an apparent lack of.
https://i.imgur.com/WWOuGGW.jpg
https://www.theneighborhoodmoms.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/...
https://s3.amazonaws.com/spoonuniversi-wpengine/spoonunivers...
https://www.mcall.com/resizer/TMbbZ3l7Ik9C7bvyY7rc6Kce43c=/1...
https://s.wsj.net/public/resources/images/BN-RZ602_NYCHEE_P_...
(I didn't mean the first part as a claim to expertise; the second was a genuine question.)
I noticed "Fancy cheese" (not velveeta) showing up regularly in the 2000s, when I was starting to shop for myself, and as my cheesy experience grew, "good cheese" like the better stinky ones were more available probably 4-5 years later. Now, even in my local supermarket which is considered the "worst" of all the grocery stores in the area, I can get authentic cheeses from a variety of places.
I don't think people's tastes evolved as much as the supply chain for getting these cheeses around has improved much in recent years, making tasty cheese super affordable.