This is a recipe from my mother in law my wife's mother is Spanish and knows I make my own cheese so gave me a amazing Spanish cheese recipe called Formaggio Ubriaco which roughly translates to (drunken cheese). Rather than using a mesophilic culture she used full buttermilk that was left out for ten hours and then added but she said that it didn't matter. So here is the recipe.
Ingredients
8 litres (2 gallons) full cream cow’s milk
1/8th teaspoon Mesophilic direct set culture
1/8th teaspoon (just less than 1 ml) Calcium Chloride diluted in ¼ cup non-chlorinated water (if using homogenised milk)
1 teaspoon (6 ml) liquid rennet diluted in ¼ cup water”
1 Tablespoon cheese salt
6 cups (1.5 L) water, heated to 80°C (175°F)
1.5 L (1.5 quarts) Sweet Red wine” (this is really up to your personal taste)
METHOD
1. Pour milk in to either your double boiler set up or a large pot.
2. Add diluted calcium chloride, stir well. Heat the cow’s milk to 32°C (90°F), and stir in diluted starter culture, cover, and ripen for 10 minutes.
3. Maintaining the target temp of 32°C, add diluted rennet and stir for one minute. Cover and let set for one hour at target temperature.
4. Check for a clean break. Once you have a clean break, cut curds into 1 cm (1/2") cubes. Stir gently for one minute, then let curds rest for five minutes at target temperature.
5. With a sterilized measuring cup, draw off one-third of the whey. Gradually add the heated water, and stir to bring the temperature of the curds up to 33°C (92°F). This will take around two and a half cups of heated water. Stir continuously to keep the curds from matting at the bottom of the pot.
6. Once you reach the new target temp, let the curds rest for ten minutes, stirring occasionally.
7. Drain off the whey to the level of the curds using your sterilised cup or measuring spoon.
9. Strain off the whey using a cheesecloth. Pour the curds back into the pot, and mill into 6 mm (¼ inch) pieces. Blend in the salt.
10. Pack the curds into a 900 gm lined mould. Cover the curds with one corner of the cheese cloth, apply the Follower, and press at 10kg for twenty five minutes.
11. Remove cheese from press, and gently unwrap. Turn cheese over, rewrap, and press at 15kg for twenty minutes.
12. Repeat by turning over again and press at 20kg for twelve hours.
13. Remove cheese from the press and mould, skewer about 10 holes about half way through the cheese on each end, then bathe the cheese in a sterilized food grade plastic container in the red wine for 24 hours. Ensure the cheese is completely covered and flip end-over-end at the 12 hour mark.
14. Remove the cheese, lay on cheese mat for about six hours, or until it is dry to touch.
15. Repeat the wine bath for another 24 hours, topping up with additional wine if necessary, flip again at the 12 hour mark. Remove, and dry on mats until touch dry.
16. Once this is done either wax your cheese or vac-pack it then age for three months, turning everyday.
This is a wonderful full cheese it has a a firm texture with lovely sweet after notes. If you have any question feel free to ask me