Author Topic: Camembert results #1  (Read 3050 times)

BauerHaus

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Camembert results #1
« on: January 14, 2010, 03:34:34 AM »
At four weeks we picked up the start of an amonia smell on 3 of 4 cheese. We opened the three and tasted tested each. But I would like to post the pictures before I discuss what we found and any ideas on the visual condition.

BauerHaus

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Re: Camembert results #1
« Reply #1 on: January 14, 2010, 03:36:47 AM »
one more

vogironface

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Re: Camembert results #1
« Reply #2 on: January 21, 2010, 06:03:34 AM »
I noticed the smell at nearly the exact age on mine.  Just posted a similar question in the post "are these camemberts ready to wrap".  I will be interested in responses to both.  How did these taste? 

mtncheesemaker

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Re: Camembert results #1
« Reply #3 on: January 21, 2010, 01:28:11 PM »
From my limited experience, I would say your cheese has developed "toad" or "slip" skin. There is lots of info in the forum as it is a common problem in Cams. That said, I have eaten several cheeses with this fault, to no harm, and some have been quite tasty.
Pam
« Last Edit: January 21, 2010, 03:39:41 PM by mtncheesemaker(Pam) »

Offline DeejayDebi

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Re: Camembert results #1
« Reply #4 on: January 22, 2010, 04:05:56 AM »
OOOooooOOO that's tough. Sorry to see that. My first crottins did something similar but not as watery. My skins slipped off but the cheese inside was still fairly firm. Maybe because I saw it was happening and peeled it off? It grew a second skin.  I'm thinking it's too late for this though. Color is nice.

iratherfly

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Re: Camembert results #1
« Reply #5 on: January 22, 2010, 09:26:03 AM »
Happened to me very recently on a pair of Camemberts that started out perfectly. I think that it was fluctuations in aging temperatures with the fact that I didn't salt the cheese enough. Salting it is key - not just to taste and improve drying but more importantly to control the growth of the Geo Candidum. Too much of it grows too fast and this is what you get.

I since purchased a pH meter and a wine refrigirator that will keep a steady and humid aging temps. Now working on a batch of Goat's Camemberts - these already look better than the toad skin batch. Do over BauerHaus, don't give up. This isn't an easy cheese to get right and some milk will spill on the way.

Offline michoutim

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Re: Camembert results #1
« Reply #6 on: January 23, 2010, 01:26:45 AM »
If it is a salting problem, and you salted by hand, then you would be safer to brine salt the Cam. That's what we do at home...

Was it tasty?  If so no worries, you're already 80% on the road to success.

As for Geometricum, I can't comment because we use Peni, Candidum...

Offline michoutim

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Re: Camembert results #1
« Reply #7 on: January 23, 2010, 01:33:26 AM »
My husband says the preparation was not cultured enough for a start. Or it may have been too fresh...

Or maybe the rennet didn't take well enough.

Or you didn't let enough whey expell from the curd...

Also the curd has to be cut very carefully, gently.

Did you find some pieces of fat in your refrigerated whey ? That would mean you ill treated the curd...

vogironface

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Re: Camembert results #1
« Reply #8 on: January 23, 2010, 04:54:47 AM »
michoutim,

When you brine a cam how do you do it?  What solution would you use and for how long?

Thanks?

Offline michoutim

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Re: Camembert results #1
« Reply #9 on: January 23, 2010, 07:07:39 AM »
We make a saturated salt solution, "melting" 250 g of salt WITHOUT IODINE in 1 L of water.

Or To make up brine at 20 % strength, take 200 g of salt and make up to 1Kg with distilled water,

We only make cheese for home, so  for  1 hour and a 1/2. That for a cheese made with 2 L of milk. We did the same timing, of course, when we made two logs at a time a few days ago. It is still 1.5 hours.

For a big cheese made with say 4 L of milk, he left the cheese in the brine for 2 hours and a 1/2.

You can tell the brine is still saturated because when you take it out of the fridge, you see some salt on the bottom of the bottle. If not he reboils it adding a bit more salt.

After each use the brine is filtered and put back in the bottle.

I hope it helps.

Alex

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Re: Camembert results #1
« Reply #10 on: January 23, 2010, 07:44:52 AM »
When I make a 3 liters batch (2 Cams), I drain 1/3 of the whey and gently mix in 80 gr of salt. Now I pour off the exes whey and fill the moulds. Repetitively successfull process. Recently I made an experiment by salting the cheeses after the draining, using a salt shaker. Very good result with good blooming within 4-5 days.

BauerHaus

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Re: Camembert results #1
« Reply #11 on: January 24, 2010, 07:05:30 PM »
First off, the taste was good in parts of the cheese mostly where the consistency was correct. The runny sections had too much ammonia smell.

I have since re run the recipe with a pH meter and did find the pH did not come down to the 4.7 range I was expecting my next run will be with double the culture.

Still learning....