Author Topic: Large Vat Caerphilly  (Read 9733 times)

Kern

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #15 on: May 22, 2015, 03:49:11 AM »
Nummy, nummy???  ???

Here is the cheese at one month.  Looks like the mycodore may be getting swamped by Geo.  I am thinking or removing the mold with a stiff brush while the rind is still hard.  Any thoughts on this?

Offline Tiarella

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #16 on: May 22, 2015, 11:04:23 AM »
Hi Kern
I've done quite a few Mycodore tommes and I did do some brushing. I had one that I couldn't keep under control....it was like a shag carpet within 4 days of a good brushing. I had fun experimenting with washing it with straight ACV, whiskey, tap water, etc.    all choices were mere setbacks to its regrowth but that was okay with me. I think the full strength ACV did the most. It was a really yummy cheese.


Stinky

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #17 on: May 22, 2015, 01:14:21 PM »
When are you planning to cut it?  ;)

Kern

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #18 on: May 22, 2015, 02:09:34 PM »
In about a month.   :P

jmason

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #19 on: May 24, 2015, 05:41:18 PM »
Kern,
Thanks for the link to that food service supply company.  You wouldn't believe the trouble I have had in my neck of the woods finding something as simple as a bakers bench scraper.  And it has given me a few ideas for when I expand my cave and move to bigger cheese makes.  Nice write up on the caerphilly also, AC4U.

John

Kern

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #20 on: May 25, 2015, 01:23:33 AM »
Thanks for the cheese jmason.  (Did you remember to click the "thumbs up" below my name following your pronouncement?  That is how cheeses are actually awarded.)

The mold on my Caerphilly was removed by scraping.  This left a pitted surface where the darker molds appeared prior to the grey white mold (which I assume is Geo).  I brine washed it following the scraping and made a brew of mycodore and misted it this morning.  It is now in its ripening box.  I'll post a photo when there is some action.   :)

Offline OzzieCheese

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #21 on: May 25, 2015, 01:42:21 AM »
Hi Kern,  Just one thing that might help next time is hand salting the outside as you re-wrap and press.  it doesn't take a greate deal - about 1/2 teaspoon each time and I redress and hand salt three times.  I find this sets up the natural rind nicely for a 4-5 week ripening period and to keep the black mould away from the rind.  I have my Cheddars in the same same as my Caerphilly and got nerry a spot of black - tho the cheddars have a nice little crop one shelf below.  The two legged cheese mites don't let it get much older than that :)

-- Mal 
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Kern

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #22 on: May 25, 2015, 02:05:27 AM »
Mal, as usual you come up with some great hints.  I shall try this.  My recipe was from Caldwell's book and I had added the optional mycodore.  Does this produce a black mold?

Offline OzzieCheese

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #23 on: May 25, 2015, 04:52:22 AM »
No, I'm pretty sure fromthe description is 'Poil De Chat (Cat's Hair) Mold'.  I love it when the first hit for a cheese 'Thing' on google is our forum ;D

http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php?topic=3101.0

As far as I know mycodore should produce a tan coloured 'Felt Like' matting. Yours looks like an electrified black sprout.

-- Mal
Usually if one person asks a question then 10 are waiting for the answer - Please ask !

jmason

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #24 on: May 25, 2015, 02:43:54 PM »
pretty sure I did Kern, did your number of cheeses increase?  if not I'll hit ya again.  Sure from watching some of your makes that I'll be doing that anyway.  And thanks also for the advice you posted re: my caerphilly questions

Kern

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #25 on: May 25, 2015, 07:58:58 PM »
Looks like it did now.  Thanks.   :)

Kern

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #26 on: June 15, 2015, 05:21:24 PM »
I cut the six pound Caerphilly this morning.  It looks pretty good.  The rind appears to be well developed.  The paste is somewhat crumbly with just about the right moisture.  The flavor is quite good with early notes of mild cheddar with after notes of very slightly salty tang.  Eating about a quarter of it now with the rest vacuum packed and put back in the cave for a few more weeks.  All-in-all a "keeper" that I'll make again.   ^-^

jmason

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #27 on: June 16, 2015, 12:34:20 AM »
looks very nice Kern, about 7 weeks old now if mental math is right.  It looks to have a creamy quality to the paste as well.  And indeed the rind looks excellent.
AC4U

John

ps now you got me anxious to cut into mine, holding off as long as I can

Offline Boofer

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #28 on: June 16, 2015, 03:21:00 AM »
The rind appears to be well developed.
So the rind was mycodore only? Did you add Geo? Looks great, Kern. Glad to see that your earlier concern about the falling pH didn't prove to be a problem after all.

Kudos and a cheese for your success.

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Kern

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Re: Large Vat Caerphilly
« Reply #29 on: June 16, 2015, 05:07:14 AM »
Boofer, John thanks for the cheeses.  The mycodore was added to the mix as noted above.  It picked up some dark mold almost immediately during aging and likely some Geo with the mycodore.  The photo at the top of page 2 shows the spots of dark mold.  Following this photo I wiped everything off with a salt/vinegar blend, let the now clean rind dry a couple of days and then sprayed it with mycodore.  Within a week the white molds had covered everything and no more of the dark mold showed up.  There was no softening under the rind as I expected from Caldwell's recipe. 

The knife doesn't do much for scale but it is a knife with a ten-inch blade.  The cheese is about 7.25 inches in diameter.  I took it out of a 93%RH ripening box about a week before cutting it and the crack in the photo showed up since then.  The crack is only in the outer (mold) rind.