Author Topic: My Cheese is wet in aging room.  (Read 2625 times)

chefrjmarvin

  • Guest
My Cheese is wet in aging room.
« on: February 19, 2013, 10:01:38 PM »
Hey guys. New to the site. New to the art.

I made a Gouda. Air dried it upstairs and it cracked. I figured due to the lack of moisture in my house.  So I moved it down to my cave which is about 10 degrees colder (55) and humidity of around 80.   My Gouda started getting moister and moister during the aging prior to waxing.  Now it is noticeably wet with a small hint of bleach smell. (Possible due to my sanitizing the Tupperware). Should I bring it back upstairs and let it dry again and just wrap it?  I prefer natural wrap over wax. Thanks!   

Rj

linuxboy

  • Guest
Re: My Cheese is wet in aging room.
« Reply #1 on: February 19, 2013, 10:35:57 PM »
wrap it in what?

chefrjmarvin

  • Guest
Re: My Cheese is wet in aging room.
« Reply #2 on: February 19, 2013, 10:59:26 PM »
cloth and lard

margaretsmall

  • Guest
Re: My Cheese is wet in aging room.
« Reply #3 on: February 19, 2013, 11:34:03 PM »
It sounds as though the initial drying was too quick, so the outside dried out, but the interior was still damp. Have you actually waxed it yet? Best to wait until it seems dry before either waxing or bandaging. I'd suggest leaving it in your cave which seems to have good temperature and humidity, if you have it in a closed box wipe the moisture out every day and maybe crack the lid open a bit. When the surface seems dry again then you can wax. If you don't the moisture will gather under the wax and the cheese won't taste good at all.
Margaret

chefrjmarvin

  • Guest
Re: My Cheese is wet in aging room.
« Reply #4 on: February 19, 2013, 11:53:50 PM »
cool. i will do that.

i checked my humidity today and it was rather maxed out, so it might be adding a little too much extra moisture.
im going to wipe it down, sing it a song and put it back to bed now!


chefrjmarvin

  • Guest
Re: My Cheese is wet in aging room.
« Reply #5 on: February 20, 2013, 10:26:05 PM »
It sounds as though the initial drying was too quick, so the outside dried out, but the interior was still damp. Have you actually waxed it yet? Best to wait until it seems dry before either waxing or bandaging. I'd suggest leaving it in your cave which seems to have good temperature and humidity, if you have it in a closed box wipe the moisture out every day and maybe crack the lid open a bit. When the surface seems dry again then you can wax. If you don't the moisture will gather under the wax and the cheese won't taste good at all.
Margaret

Margaret, im sorry i also wanted to ask...my gouda as i said is pretty wet now and it is sticky to the touch.  Will it be ok sitting in my cave for another week or so in this condition?   According to my recipe I am to age it or cure it for three weeks prior to waxing.  It has been about 1 and a 1/2 weeks thus far but the recipe doesn't give much indication as to what I should be looking for, or feeling for during this process.