B. linens?

[Dakotalew]

Hi, i been a lurker here for whats seems like years now, but this is my first post. I pretty much make only 3 cheeses, Parmesan, Belper Knolle, and basic simple cheddar (not actually cheddard). I am a chemist by trade and i do things by the books.... till 10 days ago when i had a comedy of errors, when it rains it pours.

My wife was talking about how she wanted some cheddar, but our local cow wasn't producing (gestation), so i thought i would just pickup 6 gallons of whole pasteurized milk at the store and make a big block, never done it so i thought hell why not.

I did the usual stuff, mesophilic culture, right rennet per volume, then I screwed up by heating my milk to fast (darn wife talking to me haha). i knew what i did so i let it sit in the whey for a good 30 min longer then i normally do to try and save it. I then pressed it to 50# over 14 hours, (usual flipping, and gradual pressure). I  was mortified when i realized that i forgot to salt it before it went into the press. So I thought i would just brine it for 24 hours like i do with my Parmesan, i don't mind a salty cheese and why not it may turn out great.

Well i been battling keeping this damn cheese dry and form a rind, i have now won the battle on the rind development, i also know it was caused by not getting enough whey out of the cheese. Its definitely got a stinky feet odor to it, which i assume is B. linens. It was smelling my house up so bad i decided i would give it a small kick of vinegar to knock it back a little, and it did, but it is still there and i am curious now to leave it and see what she will do when I age it.

Question: it should be okay to eat, and i now want to wax it and age it like i would a cheddar, or not wax it? should i cut it in half (its a very big block of cheese) and see if it taste moldy before putting it in the cave? i like Limburger style of taste so hell why not let it go, any suggestions or am i wasting my time and should pitch it?

thanks!

[Gregore]

Certainly don't pitch it .

I see no reason why it will not be edible

 I would ask how big is this cheese and what form factor ?


If it is not too wet inside  it could turn out some what like a washed rind tomme

[awakephd]

Definitely keep it! It may be extra-crumbly from extra acid development, and/or have some sour/off taste from extra whey. But I expect it will be edible, and might even be great.

If you wax, or even more if you vacuum-bag it, you will deprive the molds of oxygen and stop them from further development. On the other hand, you might want to "celebrate the mold" and just keep it brushed down.

[Dakotalew]

I just wanted to be sure, I cure alot of meat as well, so I have had to pitch some epic heartbreaking efforts along the way. Which on a side note i battle bactoferm and TSM trying to bloom on some of my cheeses which always makes chuckle.

On the size of the wheel, i have no idea, i have never weighed my cheeses or really thought much of it, it just is what it is. With that said, its a pretty big round of cheese, i pressed it in a large hard round. I will take a picture and weigh it and post it on here for your curiosity. I really just dabble in the cheese stuff, just enough to compliment the charcuterie.

You convinced me not to wax it, i will let it flourish and risk it. If it looks to be getting to dry after a couple of months maybe i will brush wax it to not kill the goodies, i do that with the parm after 3 months anyways.

thanks for the advice!

[Gregore]

Linexboy once stated that not much that is dangerous grows on dry rind cheeses

Unlike meat

[Dakotalew]

Cheese wheel 5lbs on the nose.

[Andrew Marshallsay]

The 1st Law of Cheese: The worse it smells, the better it tastes.

[Gregore]

That is a nice width to hight cheese for a tomme and or a cheddar type ,

you could also do a washed rind tomme .

[Dakotalew]

Ok well, i like the idea of a washed rind. I always liked Guinness and cheddar when I was in the service, so what do you think about bathing it in Guinness once a day for 1 hour a side  for about 6 days then once or twice a week for a few weeks then maintenance baths while it ages out for 3-6 months till i cant take looking at it?

 I already have a rind there, its not thick yet so i am sure i can still get it to penetrate. I am open to to other ideas or suggesting since i am leaving my comfort zone.   

[Gregore]

I have never tried a beer washed ring so others my have to chime in , but somewhere in the back of my brain I seem to recall that it can lead to issues with yeast from the sugars in the beer . I seem to to remember that it should be done closer to when it is ready to eat .

But I think some on this forum have gotten away with it , so hopefully those who have will tell you how.

[Stinky]

Yeah, beer is risky, you don't want to infect your cheese with yeast. The main point of alcohol is to help sterilize the rind so that linens can be nice and happy.

[Gregore]

Some one with a better brain than mine might be able to say if this would work or not , but I suspect that if you add something like vodka to the beer to bring it above  19 percent to kill off all the yeasts  then it might work . But I am not sure if the sugars still present from the beer would cause any issues long term .

I also seem to recall reading here once that the beer losses its flavor  on the cheese if not done very close to eating time .

You might want to search for beer wash under the "Semi hard sweet washed curd boards."  .....I read them from beggining to end  all 33 pages when I first started to make cheese  and I am sure  Linuxboy had something to say on the subject so where in there . 

[Al Lewis]

Give it a good wiping off with some white wine and wax it.  It will be fine.   As far as B linens are concerned, they are the same bacteria that give you athletes foot therefore the smell.  They are in the air everywhere so don't sweat them.

[Andrew Marshallsay]

Yeah, beer is risky, you don't want to infect your cheese with yeast.

Having done a couple of ale-washed rind cheeses and given that it is a technique with a well established pedigree, I'm a little surprised to see the concerns being aired about it on this thread. I would be interested to know more about the problems involved.