John's Cheese #044 - Gouda #6

[Cheese Head]

This is my second Gouda making with more involved step of pre-pressing in whey. First/yesterdays batch records here. On this batch altered recipe as follows:

• MILK CULTURING: As using freeze dried DVI starter culture, increased pre-rennet ripening temp from average 31C/88F to max in 4 recipes of 32C/90F for faster acid production and time from 30 min to max in 4 recipes 45 min to get more acid production. Also added Annatto food colourant (no effect on texture or aroma/flavour).
• CURD MAKING: Cut curds in larger ~0.4"/1 cm rods rather than ~0.3"/8 mm square rods.
• PRESSING: Last batch pressed 7.5 hours at ~90 pounds/41 kg, pressed this btach overnight for 11 hours @ 50 pounds/23 kg.

MILK CULTURING

• Aug 16, 2009, 11:00AM: Placed four 1 US gallon jugs of store bought pasteurized homogenized whole cow's milk from fridge into sink and filled sink with warm water to warm milk.
• Aug 16, 2009, 11:25AM: Poured milk into stockpot on gas burner ring on stove. Measurements 22C/72F, 5.80 pH (on my uncalibrated cheap gauge). Started warming slowly (stirring occasionally to reduce hot spot on bottom).
• Aug 16, 2009, 11:30AM: Measured 1.02 grams Danisco's Choozit Brand DVI Mesophilic Starter Culture MM100 onto mini digital scale, (roughly 2.25 times manufacturers up to recommendation). Tapped off onto milk and stirred in with slotted ladle. As milk pasteurized, to standardize - help coagulation, trickled and stirred in 1 teaspoon diluted CaCl2.
• Aug 16, 2009, 12:03AM: Milk warmed to target 32C/90F, measured ph at 5.78, turned off heat. Diluted 16 drops Annatto food colouring and stirred into milk, covered and set aside 45 minutes for culture to ripen.

CURD MAKING

• Aug 16, 2009, 12:55PM: Measurements 32.4C/90.4F, 5.75 pH. Measured 0.3 gram CHR Hansen Brand powdered rennet onto mini digital scale, diluted in 2/3 cup cool water, trickled into milk and stirred in thoroughly for 1 minute and then stopping swirl with ladle. Covered and set aside for curd to set.
• Aug 16, 2009, 2:00PM: OK curd set, cut curd into small ~0.3"/8 mm square rods with bread knife, measured temp at 89.5F/32.0C, let rest 5 minutes, stirred gently intermittently for 15 minutes, curds still soft and not released a lot of whey, repeated for a second 15 minutes. Turned gas on low to warm little, forgot caught when temp had risen to 94F/32.4C, guess started curd washing step already! Let rest at end for curds to sink.

CURD WASHING

• Aug 16, 2009, 2:45PM: With jug, removed whey equal to one fourth of original milk volume.
• Aug 16, 2009, 2:50PM: Filled a bowl with hot tap water, measured at 110F, zapped for 1 minute to bring up to 115F. Then while stirring curds, added bowl of hot water, overshot target 95F (35.0C), at 102F/34.4C. Stirred gently intermittently for another 5 min.
• Aug 16, 2009, 2:55PM: Removed another couple quarts of water and replaced with target 100F (37.8C).
• Aug 16, 2009, 3:00PM: Stirred gently for 30 min, then let curds settle to the bottom of vat for 5 min.
• Aug 16, 2009, 3:45PM: Measurements 99.5F/37.5C, 5.4 pH. Removed whey-water and placed in second large stock pot.

PRESSING

• Aug 16, 2009, 3:50PM: Placed 6" diameter hoop in whey-water, placed cheesecloth in hoop, hand placed curds in cheesecloth, packing down by hand. Placed flollower on cheese and for weight in whey used 1/2 US gallon vodka bottle . Pressed bottle down by hand a couple times.
• Aug 16, 2009, 4:30PM: After 30 min pre-pressing, removed cheese-cheesecloth-hoop-vodka bottle weight from whey-water and sat in sink to drain for 10 min.
• Aug 16, 2009, 4:45PM: Turned cheese and replaced vodka bottle weight with 20 pounds/9 kg of metal weights for 30 min.
• Aug 16, 2009, 5:15PM: Removed cheese, turned and pressed with ~50 pounds/27 kg weight overnight. For extra weight used foldable ladder as weight as don't have a good cheese press.

SALTING

• Aug 17, 2009, 6:00AM: After 14 hours, removed cheese from press, weighed, 1.81 kg/3.98 pounds, and placed in saturated brine bath.
• Aug 17, 2009, 10:00PM: Removed cheese from sat brine after 16 hours (4 hours per pound of cheese).

AGING

• Aug 17, 2009: Patted cheese dry with paper towel, weighed 1.72 kg/3.78 pounds (lost 5% weight while in brine), placed cheese on mat in plastic tupperware box with lid on but cracked and placed box in fridge to age.
• Aug 19, 2009: Turned cheese, checked that mold free, replaced mat, and placed in plastic box with lid on but cracked back in fridge.
• Aug 26, 2009: Checked, mold free, bathed in saturated brine for 4 minutes, placed on clean mat in clean plastic box in fridge with lid on but cracked.
• Sep 1, 2009: Age 15 days. Checked for mold, thin white deposit on rind, especially on bottom where against mat (see picture below), bathed in saturated brine for 4 minutes, placed on clean mat in clean plastic box in fridge with lid on but cracked.
• Sep 11, 2009: Age 25 days. Have been checked for mold and bathing cheese in saturated salt brine for 4 minutes every third day. Couple points of black mold, white deposit on rind is more prominant, member Francoise in this thread says it is good Geotrichum candidum mold (see pictures below). Bathed in saturated brine for 4 minutes, placed on clean mat in clean plastic box in cheese fridge with lid on barely cracked.
• May 10, 2010: Age 9 months. This cheese has been sadly very ignored in the cheese cave, at one time to reduce cracking I enclosed in a ziplock bag but had too much mold/yeast so left partly open. Today finally bushed reasonably clean under tap and cut open. Delicious, nice texture, little blue mold in cracks, very very pungent. My wife says it smells like locker rooms or old ice hockey gym bags, delicious and still surprisingly moist.

NOTES

• My largest stockpot rivot hole started to leak milk slowly, placed cloth to soak up.
• Next time do not try to make a 100% natural rind.

[Cheese Head]

Pictures #1, camera doing funny things with colours, whet is green, curds are cream coloured, no where near as picture, and whey inside hoop is green, looks yellow probably because of colour of curds in it . . .

[Cheese Head]

Pictures #2 . . .

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Pictures #3 . . .

[Cheese Head]

Pictures #4 . . .