Author Topic: 1st Taleggio make  (Read 13115 times)

boothrf

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Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #15 on: September 04, 2012, 11:53:40 PM »
bbracken, I understand your frustrations! One thing cheesemaking has taught me is ........P A T I E N C E.........  I'm normally used to getting quick results and feedback, but with my cheesemaking I just have to be patient.  I sometime wish I could make much bigger batches, so I had enough samples to taste one every week of maturation! ;)

Regarding the learning process, I totally agree with boofer, taking lots of notes and photos really helps. I also found that concentrating on one variety and aiming to "perfect" that really helped me focus my learnings. I spent 9 months just on simple cams initially, and have only now branched out into pressed cheeses. This allowed me to keep very focused on the one cheesemaking process and get to know it well. I was even able to get a better understanding of the seasonal variations in environmental conditions that us home cheesemakes need to contend with. ie make room temps varying from 12C to 40C!

I also research various recipes, and like you, often end up with 3-4 slightly different versions. I usually defer to a recipe from the forum, rather than random websites, as I can usually see the results and know a lot more about the cheesemaker from their forum posts! ie I develop a level of trust in their processes and recipes.

Good luck with your upcoming projects, I'll be watching with much interest!

bbracken677

  • Guest
Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #16 on: September 05, 2012, 12:05:46 AM »
Thanks Bob! Funny thing is, regarding most things in life, I am actually pretty patient, but with cheeses (being similar to cooking) I find that there is a bit of a disconnect lol

But yeah...no real choice but to be patient  :)

I dont think I want to just focus on one style of cheese...there are just too many I enjoy. Besides...given the delay in feedback I have to wait until one is ripe in order to be able to tweak a process or formula...in the meantime I could initiate other projects to run in parallel, so to speak.

Love cheesemaking! Just about every aspect is cool...the research, the formulation, the process, the community and specially....Frankenstein's monster! It's alive! .... oh wait...no.... cheesey goodness!

Offline Boofer

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  • Location: Lakewood, Washington
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Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #17 on: September 05, 2012, 06:18:01 AM »
....Frankenstein's monster! It's alive! .... oh wait...no.... cheesey goodness!
By jove, I think he's got it!

It's like your birthday and Christmas (or favorite holiday ;)) whenever you open a cheese!  8)

Yeah, Bruce, I'm with you...concentrate on just a few select cheese styles at a time!  :D

-Boofer-
Let's ferment something!
Bread, beer, wine, cheese...it's all good.

bbracken677

  • Guest
Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #18 on: September 10, 2012, 03:11:31 PM »
I have been washing the cheeses in an SR3 and 3% brine solution for the past week...there is a slight geo growth, I believe, but no sign of the SR3 yet. They have become a bit moist to the touch, so I have set them out for a few hours to dry. I ran into an issue last week where I apparently contaminated my SR3 wash and had to mix another batch up. Not sure if that has anything to do with the moist exterior or if they just need another salt application before resuming the SR3 application.

Offline Boofer

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Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #19 on: September 11, 2012, 02:50:19 AM »
They look good. Be careful that the rack isn't rustable. Some folks have done that and had rusty red marks underneath.  :o

Patience. Sometimes the linens takes a while. It also needs to breathe, so take them out for an airing every so often.

-Boofer-


Let's ferment something!
Bread, beer, wine, cheese...it's all good.

bbracken677

  • Guest
Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #20 on: September 11, 2012, 03:00:11 AM »
Thanks for the advice!

The rack is stainless and no problems so far....the racks are solely for my cheese. Cookies can rest elsewhere  haha

iratherfly

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Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #21 on: September 11, 2012, 06:47:40 PM »
Looking good!
The B.Linens will grow strong. In fact, when the cheese is dark beige, you should stop the wash and the geo will mature to the strong orange within a week or two. This is your 2nd week so you need to give the B.Linens more time to grow now, space your washed now to once every 3 days and next week do only 1 or 2 washes, then stop.

bbracken677

  • Guest
Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #22 on: September 11, 2012, 07:31:21 PM »
Ok cool  :)  They are hanging out in the cave atm...left them out a few hours a day or 2 ago and gave them a light dusting of salt. About time for another wash!

Thanks for the advice! 

iratherfly

  • Guest
Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #23 on: September 12, 2012, 06:39:29 AM »
Why do you dust them with salt?  Too much salt may kill the b.linen. It also dries and salts the cheese. You only use it as an abrasive once or twice on some cheeses. You should have 3-4% in your b.linen morge which is perfect.

bbracken677

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Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #24 on: September 12, 2012, 03:06:22 PM »
Thanks....wasnt sure what to do and since the cheeses were a bit slimy I thought a bit of salt may be what is called for....is the slime related to the b.linens?

iratherfly

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Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #25 on: September 12, 2012, 07:45:51 PM »
The slime is probably moccase. That's geo having a party.  You can retake control by reducing temperature / humidity.  Remember what I said about geo loving fat? That's probably related to you adding cream. When you do that, you may want to adjust the conditions to restrict or slow down geo growth.  Overgrowth of geo also inhibits B.Linen growth because too much nutrients are consumed by the geo so the B.Linen is starving.  Luckily though, B.Linens are really great at growing in lower temperature so if you lower the temperature you can have great growth of B.Linen while slowing down the Geo. Do I make sense?

Did you use geo? Which type?
What's your aging temperature now?  Note that Taleggio is aged at particularly cool temperatures. Much colder than most washed rind cheeses.

bbracken677

  • Guest
Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #26 on: September 12, 2012, 08:09:10 PM »
I will have to check what geo I used...the cheese is aging at 41F and 85-87% RH (except for the few hours I had it sitting out to breathe yesterday, or day before).  I can drop the temp a bit more but they are in the same container with the cams...that may have "helped" the geo growth as well    :)  Will keep up with the b.linens brine wash...since I left it sitting out and gave it a taste of salt the slimy has just about gone away.

iratherfly

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Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #27 on: September 13, 2012, 04:36:45 AM »
41°F is good temperature. No need to change. Geo will be kept in check. The salt might have killed it off and dried off the surface, but it may be fighting the B.Linen too.

bbracken677

  • Guest
Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #28 on: September 14, 2012, 11:59:44 PM »
The Geo I used was: GEO 15 LYO 10 D.   I checked it today, and gave it another b.linens wash and they look much improved with a tad bit of an orangish hue showing as well as areas of mild whitish barely distinguishable growth. No gooey stuff lol 

We seems back on track here so far.

What flavor characteristics to b.linens impart to a cheese?

iratherfly

  • Guest
Re: 1st Taleggio make
« Reply #29 on: September 18, 2012, 06:56:50 AM »
Stinky! It also helps break down acidic pastes. Sulfuric, meaty notes. Enhancing the meaty and beer/yeast properties. The mild supple interior stands up to the stinky qualities and it's just a fantastic combination