Earlier this year I made two tommes using the tomme au marc recipe from the New England Cheesemaking website, with the following variations:
- Each was made from 6L of milk
- The first was not commited to the marc but finished with a natural rind. (I made it too early, before the grapes were ready)
- The second was encased in marc for about 3 months.
- I used shiraz rather than the merlot recommended in the recipe.
I have opened both in the past week, about 3 1/2 and 4 months after the makes. The results were satisfying, but in some respects, unexpected.
The natural rind tomme (the first natural rind cheese I have done) is quite hard and flaky, similar to a cheddar. The taste is rather similar too. The rind consisted largely of a powdery green mould, probably from previous blue cheeses. Some of this had penetrated into the cheese but had not noticeably affected the taste.
The tomme au marc is a semi hard, pale coloured cheese. It has a distinctly vinous taste, particularly the rind. It has a dry, almost powdery, mouth feel.
The surprising thing is the hardness of the natural rind cheese compared with the tomme au marc. I am thinking that this may be a function of the humidity in the aging space - around 80-85%. I think I will have to watch this when I next make a semi-hard cheese. I am planning to try a Havarti soon.
( These were not washed curd cheeses but I have put them on this board because I could not see a better place.)
