Wensleydale #1 (and hello)

[Stu]

Good afternoon! I'm rather new here. Been lurking for a while, but I figured I should finally come out of the shadows now that I have something (hopefully) worth posting. I'm extremely new to cheese making, but so far it's been fun.

That said, I've attempted my first cheese. Being inspired by several things (Wallace & Gromit, user JeffHamm's recent post, and some delicious stuff we found at the grocery store), I decided to try Wensleydale.

I more or less followed a combination of JeffHamm's recipe and the one found in the 200 Homemade Cheeses book. I adjusted it to use only 2 gallons of milk though. A local grocery store carries some of the NEC cultures, so I was able to use their Meso and Buttermilk direct set cultures.

I've just waxed it and put it in my new used fridge with my new homebrewed stc1000 box. I'm planning on taking a wedge out in a couple weeks to see how it's doing. If it's good, perhaps we'll finish it off. If not, I'll re-wax and try it again in a few more.

How about some pictures?
http://imgur.com/a/Bs1VU

[smolt1]

Looks like a good start. I like the Chinese style double boiler.

[Stu]

I like the Chinese style double boiler.

We do wok we can? Ok, that was terrible. It was really the only pot wide enough to fit the $2 thrift store special I put my wax in. I may reevaluate my situation if it becomes a problem (my wok was seasoned, and steaming/smoking everywhere).

[Denise]

A very respectable first attempt, and a fine-looking result. A cheese to you!

[JeffHamm]

Hi,

Looks good.  Wensleydale really needs at least 6 weeks, though 3 months is better.  If you want something quicker, try one of the caerphilly makes.  It's edible in 3 weeks.  A cheese to you!  Looking forward to the tasting report when you do cut into it.

- Jeff

[awakephd]

Well done! Another cheese to you.

After cobbling up my own versions of a doubles boiler for wax, I started using an old crock pot - works great!

[Boofer]

I'm curious, Stu. Did you make it and wax it all in the same day?

-Boofer-

[Stu]

I'm curious, Stu. Did you make it and wax it all in the same day?

I did not. I just posted all my pictures at once. I made the cheese Friday, pulled it out of the press Saturday, and waxed it Sunday. It seemed fast to me, but it also seemed very dry to the touch. (This is my first cheese, so I'm still very new to this... "dry" might mean something else to an experienced cheese maker)

Hopefully I didn't wax it too soon. 

[Stu]

Wensleydale really needs at least 6 weeks, though 3 months is better.  If you want something quicker, try one of the caerphilly makes.  It's edible in 3 weeks.

I really wasn't sure. The book said a few weeks, but your post said a few months. I figured I'd try it early, and put it back if it wasn't good. I'm still concerned about my cheese making abilities (stirring, cutting, pressing, etc etc). So, getting something out of the fridge and onto my taste buds, (even if it's just to see if it's edible) was my biggest goal. I can probably wait a few more weeks though

I have been trying to figure out what to make next, but it sounds like I now know. I have some Welsh heritage, maybe Caerphilly is a good choice.

[Stu]

After cobbling up my own versions of a doubles boiler for wax, I started using an old crock pot - works great!

As I was reading more about waxing yesterday, I noticed a couple posts with people using crock pots. Of course, this was after I'd already bought my pot, and on Sunday when all the thrift stores are closed... but I'm thinking I might give that a shot if this cheese making thing gets going. (crock pots are bigger and would need more wax than I currently have)

[awakephd]

Yes, going with a crock pot involved investing in more wax. I don't recall exactly how much I have in mine, but it is mostly full -- probably even a bit too full, but it is nice to be able to dip the cheese half-way into the wax and get a really nice coat on it. Before that I brushed the wax on, which worked okay, but not as smooth.

One issue with the crock pot full of wax is that it does take quite a while to melt -- I have to plug it in a couple of hours before I plan to use it.

[Stu]

Yes, going with a crock pot involved investing in more wax. I don't recall exactly how much I have in mine, but it is mostly full -- probably even a bit too full, but it is nice to be able to dip the cheese half-way into the wax and get a really nice coat on it. Before that I brushed the wax on, which worked okay, but not as smooth.

One issue with the crock pot full of wax is that it does take quite a while to melt -- I have to plug it in a couple of hours before I plan to use it.

All great information to have. Thank you

[Boofer]

I'm curious, Stu. Did you make it and wax it all in the same day?

I did not. I just posted all my pictures at once. I made the cheese Friday, pulled it out of the press Saturday, and waxed it Sunday. It seemed fast to me, but it also seemed very dry to the touch. (This is my first cheese, so I'm still very new to this... "dry" might mean something else to an experienced cheese maker)

Hopefully I didn't wax it too soon. 

That is pretty quick. Normally a cheese gets a few days to dry. During those days the cheese may weep whey. That's what you need to watch for now...whey escaping or pooling under the wax.

If you have indeed cooked and stirred the curds and then pressed the cheese sufficiently, you probably won't see a problem.

-Boofer-

[Stu]

Well, it's been 4 weeks, and I was getting impatient. So, over the weekend we cut it open.




It's crumbly and a bit moist, but it looks and smells like cheese. The taste is a little bitter and a little bland, but it has a certain cheddar-ness to it. My kids love it (which is weird, they are the pickiest eaters of all time). So I'm going to call this a success.

We only ate 1/4 of the wheel, so we just rewaxed the other pieces and will open them up in the coming weeks. (the other 1/4 we'll open tonight, and we'll probably open the remaining 1/2 next weekend)