Author Topic: Mold Issue  (Read 1550 times)

brewbush

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Mold Issue
« on: March 31, 2014, 03:46:13 PM »
Hi all, brand new here and about 6 cheeses under my belt.

My issue right now seems to be mold.   1 month ago I made farmhouse cheddar and waxed them after 1 week out for drying.  I noticed they both have dark spots under the wax with mold (opened one up)   It was just on the surface, I cut the areas off and vaccumed that one, but my other one is still waxed.

I also have a parmesian that daily I have to wipe off with brine/vinegar solution and scrape off the little bits of black/blue mold spots (majority are just white tufts).  All wipe off very easily, but this is an every 2 day job.

1. Is this normal, and is there something I can coat the parms with to prevent this?  I am not at the oiling stage in their aging.
2. Is there something I should do to the cheddar prior to waxing?  I double boil the wax, so it is not super high temps.   Should I wipe the cheese down first and dry before wax even if I didn't notice any mold prior to waxing?

3.  Where do I buy the cream wax I have been reading about?  Any good online sites?  My regular ones do not carry it.

4.  What should I do about the mold under the wax now?  Unwrap it, wipe it down and rewax? 

My fear about rewaxing as I noticed in my parm is that I think it will just grow back under the new wax too...

Any other suggestions or info please let me know

mnml

  • Guest
Re: Mold Issue
« Reply #1 on: April 30, 2014, 03:22:57 PM »
In my first dairy plant job, we used to apply a spoonful of this powder, Delvocid, to a tub of warm water, just before vacuum sealing it. Some (20 lb. Cheddar blocks) would rarely emerge with some funky green-ness going on, and it would be sold as fish bait. The majority emerged with no issues, and were even cut, waxed, and re-vacuum-sealed to success.

After that hard, minimum-wage opportunity, vacuum-sealing would be a first choice over waxing, for me. The operation I currently work for is more artisanal and local, and we neither vacuum-seal or wax, so blue is a real consideration throughout our aging process. Once again, we ended up with some Delvocid, this time in liquid form, but have not had 100% success. Our older wheels with blue 'stains' are essentially not growing blue anymore, but our newer wheels entering the room are distinctly prone to it. I am slowly coming to accept it may be rind-formation related.

We used to use some thin-flat cheesecloth for this cheese, but now use a thicker, burlap-like one that leaves more of an indention... seemingly, this allows more 'trapped' water which I think encourages blue growth. Also, if a cheese was not pressed enough, and has large pockets from partially-knitted curd, that is just asking for blue growth.