Author Topic: Traditional Washing -The hows, whys, whens, whats, and what not (by request)  (Read 46226 times)

hoeklijn

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What an excelent post again. Eine Käse für Ihnen, a cheese for you!

Offline Tiarella

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Thanks, Alp.  I don't have a dedicated cheese room with fan so I can't give it those things.  I can try the pine board in a wine fridge.  I don't have any rough pine boards but I can put matting under it to help provide a minimum of ventilation.

Alpkäserei

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O dear, not mats please. Simply place the cheese directly on the wood, and wash the board every time you wash the cheese, that is all.

Tomer1

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I suppose you can continue to use these boards for washed rind cheeses once your ALP cheese is gone, and perhaps you decide to make something alse.

rosawoodsii

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I think I now know why my Muensters are not growing B.linens.  They were wet and tacky, and I left the lid off so they could dry out well before continuing to age in higher humidity.  (Groan...)  I guess I'll just tack this one up to learning experience.  I washed them well this morning and put them in a high humidity location, and maybe they'll recover and grow some smear. 

Alpkäserei, do the sides also get wiped down or only the top and bottom?

tnbquilt

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I've been washing this Swiss cheese with Al's water, wine and salt recipe. It keeps getting oranger and oranger. I have it in a ripening box with the lid propped open. If I don't, it will dry out real fast. I am in the phase where it sits at room temperature for eye formation.

It smells incredibly good. I have never washed the rind before, I've always sat it out on the table and wiped it off once a day with cheese cloth dipped in brine, being careful not to wet the cheese because that is what Rickki Carrol's recipe said to do.

Now I am brushing it with a natural bristle brush with the wash every day. It is still moist and tacky every evening with I wash it and the rind is a lot softer than when I just wiped it with cloth. This afternoon I took a nail brush, which has stiffer bristles to it, and scrubbed around on the sides to remove some mold that was starting. You really have to keep a check on the mold when you have this much moister going on.

I don't think that the bright orange color came out well in my picture

tnbquilt

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I've been washing for 8 days now and it's starting to get the slime on it. I did not start washing right out of the brine like I was supposed to, I set it in the cave for a week and let the rind dry out. Oops.

I made Gruyere on Sunday and I started washing it today. I should have washed it yesterday but I didn't read that part until today.

Alpkäserei

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apologies to all for my lack of response. i have been very busy cooking maple syrup latel
yes the sides do get washed every day

tnbquilt

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I washed my Swiss for 10 days and then stopped. It has been sitting out for 2 weeks, but no swelling like I usually see to signify the development of the eyes. I have always gotten eyes, but I usually make this in the summer. It's not real warm in the house right now.

The cheese started to develop the soft slime on the top right at 10 days, but I stopped washing it then. Now the rind has turned white in places and it smells wonderful.
« Last Edit: March 19, 2013, 11:45:33 PM by tnbquilt »

Clean break

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Quilt,
I washed mine with b. linens in a light brine for ten days also, just stopped washing yesterday and it looks EXACTLY like yours :)  in a couple of days I will start it's warm phase.  We are leaving town for spring break for 2 weeks so it will be baby sat by our friends.  I will put it in a container and have them wash it with brine if they see any mold.  They will keep it in their kitchen or some other warm spot.  I will report back when we get back.
Scott

tnbquilt

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I didn't start washing mine until the warm aging period. I let it sit in the cave and dry for a week, because I had never washed one before. I washed mine with wine, water and salt.

Keep me posted, I'd like to see what it looks like when you get back.

tnbquilt

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This is my Gruyere that I have been washing for 7 days. I have a nice white film running down the sides when I wash it now. I think that's what I'm supposed to have.

Clean break

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Nice. That sounds right (what the heck do I know?)

Alpkäserei

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those cheeses look good. i like to see the white powdery marks develop on the cheese like on you swiss. that is either salt or geo, both of which show up when things are done right
on a 2 year old alpkäse, wild geo will often have developped to the point where the entire cheese is coated with white dust. one cheese i have right now got geo so early that the rind actually wrinkled from it. thats rare, but i dont mind. geo puts a good flavor
are you always dipping your brush into the same brine, and storing it in there? it helps to get the cheese slime in there to help incubate your linens. our wash water gets really smelly afte a few cheeses, its full of bacteria. the salt and alcohol content keep the good bac around and kill the bad
your schmier look good, but maybe a little thin. to solve this i would increase the alcohol content of the wash. the alcohol and wine acids aid in breaking down the surface of the cheese to make the schmier. linens grow in this goo, not as much on the hard surface of the cheese. this goo will also harned and give you a good wax, which helps keep moisture in the cheese. thats why we really put a heavy schmier on cheeses to be aged long
now i need to stop typing, a broken finger makes this all somewhat painful.

Offline H-K-J

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now i need to stop typing, a broken finger makes this all somewhat painful.
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