I have access to 5 mont jack recipes (without looking online really):
Margaret Morris
Ricki Carrol
Tim Smith
Peter Dixon
the recipe on this site.
Morris, Carrol, this site, and Smith all say to do what seems to be a kind of homestyle cheddaring: letting the curds sit in whey (most of which has been removed) for 30 mins, stirring occasionally to prevent matting.
Peter Dixon describes a more traditional cheddaring of drained slabs that have been brought down to 86F.
Are these two processes really comparable?
Regarding salting: Everyone but Morris says to salt the curds prior to pressing. Because I do not have a beefy press and like the effect brine has on the rind, I prefer to brine everything. Is this a problem? I seem to recall a photo from American Farmstead Cheese with a caption that it was cheddar bricks in brine, making me think brining is a legit approach.
Ultimately, what is a desirable PH after pressing for a jack that will be brined? 5.3 perhaps? Mine are pressing right now.