Cheddar - What cultures to use?

[shaneb]

Hi all,

Looking through the threads in this forum there seems to be a huge variety in what starter cultures are used for cheddar makes. I'm considering making a cheddar in the next couple of weeks, but am unsure what cultures to use. I have the following available in my freezer at the moment.

Meso

MM101
MA16
Flora Danica
CHN22

Thermo

TA61
LH100
DYV17

I'll be using pasteurised unhomogenised milk.

Any suggestions on what to use and in what ratios? The recipes I have don't really suggest what cultures to use.

Thanks in advance.

Shane

[Stinky]

Maybe MM101 with a tiny pinch of Ta61? I'm really not sure.

[Spoons]

I'm not a huge fan of ST (TA61) in a cheddar. Don't get me wrong, it's good, but not my favorite choice. LD and LH, to me, do improve the taste. Personally, I'm still exploring culture mixes for a cheddar. right now I'm in the following range and hoping for good results:

RA22 (or MA 11)
+
MD 88
+
Flav 54 (a sweeter LH than LH100)

[shaneb]

Thanks Guys for your suggestions. At the moment I'd rather not buy any more starters.

Spoons - In what way do you not like TA61? Does it give a bad taste?

Shane

[Spoons]

Oh no no, I don't want you to think it tastes bad. It doesn't. It has quite a distinctive taste. Hard to describe, maybe velvety, smooth tang?  Actually, give it a try, maybe you'll like and if you don't you can take it as earned experience.

[shaneb]

Ahh okay, thanks for the clarification. I might give it a go then. Plenty of time to make more cheddar down the track.

Shane

[awakephd]

Shane,

My last cheddar, which was very, very good (and still is -- though it is disappearing fast!), had approximately 3 gallons of milk (actually, 2 gal whole, 1 gal 2%, and 1 pint cream) and used 3/16 tsp MA011 (same as the MA16 you have) plus 1/8 tsp TA061. I didn't have any MD88 at the time; if I had, I would have put a bit of that in as well.

Since FD has the same bacterias as MA011 and MD88, plus one more, I'd be tempted to try FD + TA. I say that, but in fact I've never used FD, and from time to time I've heard that it might be a bit slower in acidifying ... ?

I like Spoons' suggestion of some LH ... may have to try that this weekend, when I am planning on making another cheddar ....

[Al Lewis]

If you love the cheddar you made the last time I would use the exact same recipe.  Once I find something that works for me I set it in stone.

[awakephd]

I hear you -- if it ain't broke, don't play with the recipe! There are some makes that I have pretty well settled into a fixed recipe, but I've not made that much cheddar, so may still experiment a bit.

[OzzieCheese]

Hi Shane.  I like my Cheddars with a nice clean sharp taste and this is why I like the MO 030 from Sacco (Green living Australia stocks it).  This only has LL and LC cultures in it and therefore produces no CO2 and the texture is a very closed one.  The problem I have found with the others especially FD - while a nice culture - CHN22 also - are citrate fermenters and hence produce CO2 which can open the texture especially if the cheese is waxed. 

Just my 10 cents worth

-- Mal

[shaneb]

Thanks Guys. A few choices now, decisions, decisions...... Will have a think about it and will post the results.

Shane

[shaneb]

Shane,

My last cheddar, which was very, very good (and still is -- though it is disappearing fast!), had approximately 3 gallons of milk (actually, 2 gal whole, 1 gal 2%, and 1 pint cream) and used 3/16 tsp MA011 (same as the MA16 you have) plus 1/8 tsp TA061. I didn't have any MD88 at the time; if I had, I would have put a bit of that in as well.

I made a cheddar yesterday using the two cultures you listed above. I'll try and upload the make sheet tomorrow. Everything went very well in the process. It was made with a combination of Mal's recipe (thanks Mal!) and the cheddar recipe from NEC. Below are some early photos. It's still in the press until this evening.

Shane

[shaneb]

And now out of the press. 1750f is the weight out of the mould. This was a 12L make. I've attached the make sheet and a photo. I'll attempt to bandage it in the next couple of days.

Shane

[awakephd]

Shane, beautiful results -- AC4U! Congratulations on getting such a nice, smooth rind -- how large a make is this, and what was your final pressing weight?

[shaneb]

Thanks Andy. I'm very happy with how it looks out of the press. It was a 12L (just over 3 gallons) make with an additional 0.6L of pure cream. I just noticed that the weight got auto corrected. It should say 1750g.  The final press weight was 25kg (55lb) for 24hrs.

It's now in the process of drying in anticipation of bandaging.

Shane