Author Topic: First Colby -- slightly sour, slightly dry  (Read 967 times)

valereee

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First Colby -- slightly sour, slightly dry
« on: September 17, 2017, 02:38:34 PM »
My first Colby -- cut in a bit early because I couldn't wait.  ;D  Both taste and texture are recognizably Colby, but it's slightly sour and slightly dry.  What might I want to try to improve my next attempt?


Offline awakephd

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Re: First Colby -- slightly sour, slightly dry
« Reply #1 on: September 17, 2017, 10:27:03 PM »
Yes, that is really early, so one thing is simply to bag or wax one half and put it back in the cave for a couple more months. The flavor will definitely change, almost certainly significantly, at 3 months vs. 1 month. For some cheeses, such as a traditional cheddar, it is a waste of time to sample them before 6 months or more.

All that said, sour and dry sounds like you may have let the curd acidify too much. What recipe / procedure did you follow?
-- Andy

Offline Fritz

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Re: First Colby -- slightly sour, slightly dry
« Reply #2 on: September 17, 2017, 11:52:47 PM »
Lol... Valereee! A cheese for you for your impatience... you may also be a Capricorn :)
Besides, it's bad luck having 0 cheeses... so keep posting your pics and share your journey.
It looks good and I know Colby doesn't need to be aged too long... but as Andy stated, your cheese will develope more flavour and texture with some time invested...
Crumbly and sour taste may indicate a pH issue ... we see this sooo much here, please invest in a simple pH meter, they aren't that expensive and you will come to understand what's going on with much more detail.
Imaging deep frying or baking without a thermometer or dial on the oven... it would just be guesswork ... let's dial these delicious cheeses in and know where you are, to see where you need to go... we are here to help :)

F

Offline Rain Frances

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Re: First Colby -- slightly sour, slightly dry
« Reply #3 on: September 18, 2017, 04:18:50 PM »
Hi Valereee :)

Your Colby looks good! I made one in August and I'm going to try it after 6 weeks...at least that was the plan, now maybe I'll let it sit another 6 weeks as per instructions! Anyway, just to say I can't answer your question, but I might have the same one when I try mine :)

Rain

Offline Gregore

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Re: First Colby -- slightly sour, slightly dry
« Reply #4 on: September 19, 2017, 04:26:23 AM »
If it melts then it was not way to far off on ph , and should mellow to some degree with a little more time .  Dryness could be a whole bunch of other issues , or ph .

I have also found that using it in recipes that call for melted cheese helps with the sourness.

The pic of it  sure looks good though.

valereee

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Re: First Colby -- slightly sour, slightly dry
« Reply #5 on: September 19, 2017, 12:34:36 PM »
Oh, that's an idea, maybe I'll go ahead and wax it.

The recipe was from the Carroll ebook:

Heat Milk Pour the milk into the pot and heat to 86°F (30°C) on a
stove top or in a sink surrounded by very warm water. If using a stove
stir the milk while it heats slowly.
2. Coloring (optional) As milk heats, add ¼ tsp coloring to ¼ cup of
water and mix into the milk. More color can be added if desired.
3. Calcium Chloride As milk heats, add ½ tsp. of the calcium chloride
to ¼ cup water. Mix into the milk.
4. Culture When the milk is 86°F (30°C) sprinkle ½ packet of C101
mesophilic culture onto the milk surface and let sit it for 2 minutes to
rehydrate. Then mix in. Let the milk sit for 1 hour.
5. Rennet Add ½ tsp. of single-strength liquid rennet to ¼ cup
non-chlorinated water. Mix it into the milk with an up-and-down
motion for 1 minute. Let it sit for 45 minutes.
6. Cut Curds Slowly cut the curd into ½ inch cubes by making a
checkerboard pattern with the curd knife. With the slotted spoon,
break the curd into ½ inch pieces as uniformly as possible. Handle the
curds gently to avoid shattering them.
7. Cook Curds Gently stir the curds and heat to 102°F (39°C) over 30
minutes. If the curds are still soft, hold the temperature at 102°F for
15–30 minutes. Keep stirring to prevent clumping. The finished curds
should be cooked through and have a moderate resistance when
pressed between your fingers. Let the curds settle under the whey.
8. Wash Curds Remove whey down to the level of the curds. Stir curds
while adding 75°F (24°C) water until curds are 90°F (32°C). Once
cooled let curds settle. Once more remove the whey and water to the
level of the curds. While stirring add in 60°F (15°C) water until curds
are 75°F (24°C). Stir for 15–30 minutes to finish firming the curds.
9. Draining & Molding Transfer the curds to a colander lined with
butter muslin, shake off whey, then transfer the curds to a mold lined
with butter muslin. Once packed, pull the muslin taught to prevent
wrinkles, fold a piece over the top, and cover with the follower.
10. Pressing Apply 10 lbs. of pressure for 15 minutes. Remove the
cheese from mold, flip, re-mold and press with 20 lbs. for 30 minutes.
Repeat these steps and press with 40 lbs. for 90 minutes. Repeat
once more for 50 lbs. for 8 hours.
11. Salting Unmold cheese and place it in a saturated brine for 8 hours.
Sprinkle the exposed cheese with 2 tsp. of salt. At 4 hours, flip the
cheese and salt again. When done remove from the brine, wipe the
cheese and air-dry for 1–2 days. Flip as needed.
12. Aging Once dry, the cheese can be waxed. For waxing details visit
our how-to page online. Age at 52–56°F (11-13°C) with 80–85%
moisture for 4–6 weeks.

Yes, that is really early, so one thing is simply to bag or wax one half and put it back in the cave for a couple more months. The flavor will definitely change, almost certainly significantly, at 3 months vs. 1 month. For some cheeses, such as a traditional cheddar, it is a waste of time to sample them before 6 months or more.

All that said, sour and dry sounds like you may have let the curd acidify too much. What recipe / procedure did you follow?

valereee

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Re: First Colby -- slightly sour, slightly dry
« Reply #6 on: September 19, 2017, 12:36:43 PM »
I have some pH strips, and I've got a pH meter on my Christmas list! :D  I didn't test the pH of this particular batch, though. I have tested the ones I've made since this one.

Lol... Valereee! A cheese for you for your impatience... you may also be a Capricorn :)
Besides, it's bad luck having 0 cheeses... so keep posting your pics and share your journey.
It looks good and I know Colby doesn't need to be aged too long... but as Andy stated, your cheese will develope more flavour and texture with some time invested...
Crumbly and sour taste may indicate a pH issue ... we see this sooo much here, please invest in a simple pH meter, they aren't that expensive and you will come to understand what's going on with much more detail.
Imaging deep frying or baking without a thermometer or dial on the oven... it would just be guesswork ... let's dial these delicious cheeses in and know where you are, to see where you need to go... we are here to help :)

F

valereee

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Re: First Colby -- slightly sour, slightly dry
« Reply #7 on: September 19, 2017, 12:37:32 PM »
Oh, maybe I'll try a bit of it in a mac-cheese or a grilled cheese sandwich, see how it does, thanks!

If it melts then it was not way to far off on ph , and should mellow to some degree with a little more time .  Dryness could be a whole bunch of other issues , or ph .

I have also found that using it in recipes that call for melted cheese helps with the sourness.

The pic of it  sure looks good though.

Offline awakephd

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Re: First Colby -- slightly sour, slightly dry
« Reply #8 on: September 20, 2017, 01:38:10 PM »
A couple of comments on the recipe. First, there is quite a lot of stirring here - stirring while cooking (30 minutes), stirring while holding temp (15-30 minutes), and stirring after the second wash (15-30 minutes) - that adds up to 60 - 90 minutes already, but you also will be stirring probably another 15 minutes or more while adding the two washes. More stirring = dryer cheese; if you went with the maximum times for each step, try making again using the minimum times.

Second, even though this is a washed curd, the washing is happening relatively late in the process, so the bacteria should be well on their way and the pH is likely already to the point of dropping rapidly. Yes, the washing will temporarily reduce the pH by dilution, and slow down the bacteria by removing lactose ... but I find that it does NOT stop the little critters from doing their work. So after it has been pressed for 10-12 hours, it is quite likely that the pH has dropped too low. When the pH goes too low, not only will you get a different taste than you may be aiming for, but the cheese will be crumbly - which will make it seem dry regardless of how much moisture is actually in the cheese.

BUT - good news #1: If it is edible, it is a success! It may not be exactly the cheese you were aiming for, but you can always claim to have invented something new. :) And good news #2: Now you have a starting point to work from, to try changing the variables to see if you get closer to the results you want. Stir less, reduce time in press, etc., and see what happens. The fun of making your own cheese is that you get to experiment!
-- Andy