Problem with Farmhouse cheddar

[Windflower]

I've been a cheese-making maniac for the past week!    My goal was to make a farmhouse cheddar from goat milk that I could give to my cheddar-loving, cow's milk-intolerant brother for Xmas.

This is my first foray into making hard cheese, so I decided to try a couple of test batches with cow's milk before mooooving on to goat's milk, which is really expensive. The first batch was horrible because I was working out bugs with the cheese press, and generally riding the learning curve. That was expected. The second attempt was beautiful! All the bugs were worked out, and everything went as expected.

I decided to make the goat's milk cheese last night. Now, goat's milk runs over $17 per gallon here, so I wanted to do it right. I started with 2 gal of goat's milk that was well within the sell date on the quart cartons. Everything went as expected with ripening and renneting the milk. It came time to cut the curd, and I noticed that the curd was softer than that of the cow's milk. I drew the knife down the middle of the pan and then shook the pan lightly. The break could clearly be seen and the whey started to fill the gap, so I assumed that this would be the clean break that I was looking for. Perhaps I should have let it sit a while longer?

I cut the curd and then began to cook it. Everything looked good. There was plenty of whey and the curds shrank as I expected. Generally, everything looked like the cow's milk trials, except the curd was a bit softer. I drained the curd into a colander lined with cheese cloth and then noticed the first major difference. The whey did not drain quickly at all. When I drained the cow's milk curd, the whey wooshed down the drain immediately. In this case, the whey stayed on top of the curd and I had to fiddle with the cheese cloth to get it to drain. Finally I tied the corners and hung the bag. I let it sit for an hour and it still looked very glossy wet, so I let it drain for an additional 1/2 hour.

When I took down the bag, the curd was solid and hung together so that I'd have to break it apart with my fingers. I figured that I was back on track until I broke it open in the middle. It was still very wet... much wetter than when I broke open the cow's milk curd at this stage.

I salted the curd after milling it, but the curd was still pretty wet. I put the whole mass into the press for the first pressing and noticed that what was coming out in the drip tray was cloudy white instead of clear greenish, indicating that there were milk solids coming out in addition to the whey.  After taking the cheese out of the first pressing, I took off the cheese cloth and the whole thing fell apart in my hands. I put the cheese into a bowl, wrung out the cheese cloth and lined the press with it again. (Was I supposed to use new, dry cheesecloth at this point?)

I decided that pressing for another 10 minutes wouldn't really do much so I figured I'd leave it over night. About 7 hours later, I took the cheese out of the press, (it hung together this time), wrapped it in new dry cheese cloth and then put it back in the press with the full 50# of pressure on it. Minimal moisture is coming out, with it still being cloudy. (it's been in the press for 6 hours at full pressure)

Is this cheese salvageable? Was it contaminated with stray bacteria/yeast? Should I throw it away? 

[zenith1]

Windflower-it sounds as if you have a couple of issues going on. First was the milk store bought pasteurized milk? If so(and even if it was farm fresh)you probably would have benefited from adding some cacl to your milk. Goat milk tends to give a softer curd set to begin with. Also how did you determine the point to cut your curd? Have you read through the procedure of determining the correct time to cut by using the spinning bowl method and flocculation factors? If not try searching for it here on the forum, a lot has been written about those methods. By using them you will come up with the correct time every time you make a cheese run, and you will be able to come up with consistent results by using them. It sounds like your curs set was way too soft at cutting at which point you where on your way to making a hybrid chevre. Since you have carried it through the pressing I would hang on to it and see what you come up with. You did mention that you used dry cheesecloth in your second pressing. You would have been better off to soak a sterilized piece of cheesecloth in some of your saved whey  form the curd draining so you don't have a cloth sticking to the wheel problem. If some mold starts to grow on the outside just wipe it down with a brine solution(do not go to the point that it is wet)And let it dry. Also you may have had an issue of curd knitting during pressing because the curds where undoubtedly quite cool. You won't know this until you cut into the wheel unless the exterior has an open texture. You may have created a new cheese!

[Windflower]

Windflower-it sounds as if you have a couple of issues going on. First was the milk store bought pasteurized milk? If so(and even if it was farm fresh)you probably would have benefited from adding some cacl to your milk. Goat milk tends to give a softer curd set to begin with.

It was store bought goat's milk and it was pasteurized. I will order some of the calcium chloride from the cheese supply house.

Also how did you determine the point to cut your curd? Have you read through the procedure of determining the correct time to cut by using the spinning bowl method and flocculation factors?

Watch your phrase-ology! ROFL  (free points if anyone can name that reference)

I've never heard of a flocculation factor, so I guess I have some reading to do. I'm following a recipe out of Ricki Carroll's Cheese Making book. She just said to wait 45 minutes, and until you have a clean break. Having only seen my own experiments at cheese, I'm still defining that term in my own mind.

If not try searching for it here on the forum, a lot has been written about those methods. By using them you will come up with the correct time every time you make a cheese run, and you will be able to come up with consistent results by using them. It sounds like your curs set was way too soft at cutting at which point you where on your way to making a hybrid chevre. Since you have carried it through the pressing I would hang on to it and see what you come up with. You did mention that you used dry cheesecloth in your second pressing. You would have been better off to soak a sterilized piece of cheesecloth in some of your saved whey  form the curd draining so you don't have a cloth sticking to the wheel problem.

In Ricki's directions she says to remove the cheese cloth and redress, but I never understood what that meant. I was thinking that when you redress a wound, you use new bandages, and since the cheese cloth was so soaked with whey, it might be a good idea to use a new one. It ought to be interesting tonight when I take it out of the press.

So... when redressing, using new cheese cloth is not required then, and you want the whey on it so it doesn't stick, right?

If some mold starts to grow on the outside just wipe it down with a brine solution(do not go to the point that it is wet)And let it dry. Also you may have had an issue of curd knitting during pressing because the curds where undoubtedly quite cool. You won't know this until you cut into the wheel unless the exterior has an open texture. You may have created a new cheese!

I actually kept the pan of warm whey under the hanging cheese while it was draining, mainly to keep the curds from cooling too fast. So I'll just have to wait and see.

A new kind of cheese, huh? Hopefully it won't be named, "It's made of goat milk, but it got Jim darned sick anyway" cheese, lol. Thanks for your great response!

[iratherfly]

Sounds like you just did too much work and possibly was alarmed by things that shouldn't have alarmed you.  you will not see much of the greenish whey - there is little or no riboflavin in goat's milk. Softer curd does tend to give you more of a white-ish whey and contain more milk solids (Add CalCl to reduce this problem).  Also, if your curd is knotting in a bag it only makes sense that the outside will harden and trap some excess moisture for the curd in the center; doesn't matter, you are still breaking it down and pressing it.  One more thing; next time just redress the cheesecloth, don't switch to a fresh one. You want to use the one that is soaked with whey and has the same pH level and bacterium as your curd already. You also don't want it to stick to your cheese and break it down when you try to undress it. Just take your cheese out, flip it back in the cloth, press.  One more thing: I would not salt the curd. This isn't Cantal cheese... Instead, I would brine the cheese. You can control the flavor, osmosis, pH level and anti-pathogen behaviour much better when you know exactly how long you need to leave every Lb of cheese in an 18% salt brine. Spreading salt on the raw curd and let some of it wash off with the whey and under press as well as expel moisture from the curd isn't a good practice unless you have very good feeling for what you do.  Brining the cheese also creates rind!!! You need the dry rind to protect the cheese from drying out and to help create character and flavor.

The only problem you actually did have and did't suspect was that you may have over-acidified your milk in the process. Next time drain it into a cheesecloth-lined colander and be extremely careful of the times! Flocculation/coagulation time is the difference between success and bitter failure in this kind of cheese.  The entire cheese quality is measured by the time management from the minute you put the starter culture to the minute you begin cutting the curd. Everything else are just small variables that you can fix and improve if you screwed up.

For goats milk I suggest to also adjust the temp slightly lower than the cow's version (about 4F less or 2C). If your milk is pasteurized, like Zenith1 above says: Add CalCl to hold up the curd structure. If it is ultra pasteurized or UHT - forget about the cheese altogether - it won't yield curd (and even if it does - the enzymes and bacteria are dead).

I am also not sure about your Xmas timing. I don't think it would have been read.  One good gift you can give him for Xmas is the following piece of information that will make him very happy: Most cheddars (actually most aged cheese) have no lactose in them whatsoever! (maybe a trace amount in some younger cheese). Lactose is converted and breaks down somewhere around the 4th week of the cheese' aging time. Most hard cheese is perfectly suitable for the lactose intolerant! Look it up!

[Windflower]

Thanks for the great comments! I'm the newest of the new at this, so I have a lot to learn. That's the fun part! Like I said, I was just following the directions in the book by Ricki Carroll, but I'm learning that there may be better practices to follow.

I wasn't anticipating the cheese to be ready to eat for Xmas, but I know he has a very nice cellar that would be the perfect cave, so he could continue to age the cheese.

I took the cheese out of the press last night and it looked beautiful! It wasn't as solid as the cow's milk cheddar... it felt a little more fragile. It was the most beautiful white I've ever seen! I'm just going to let it age a bit and see what happens.

[Windflower]

OK... Time has passed since I made this cheese. In that time, I never waxed it. It developed mold on the outside, which I kept scraping off and then wiping down with brine.

Tonight, I couldn't stand it one more second and cut the wheel in half. 
The inside looks a beautiful white color and looks like the texture of ... well.... cheddar!  I did a taste test and it tasted rather strong, but not bad.

The outside looked terrible even after I washed off all of the mold, so I cut all of the rind away and put the two halves each in their own vacuum sealed bag. Is it going to hurt anything if it's in that vacuum seal for a week until Christmas? How long can it stay sealed like that? I plan on giving it to my brother with the promise that I'll keep working at it to make a better wheel of cheese. I started with two gallons of goat milk and there sure isn't much left, lol.

[MrsKK]

It will stay just fine in the vacuum bag until ready to use, as long as it doesn't get too warm it will keep for years.

[iratherfly]

Sorry it took so long to write back. Was away on work.

The vacuum will probably be just fine as long as the cheese is clean and doesn't have contaminants such as yeast or bread crumbs from your kitchen, etc. Just be vigilant of molds. In the vacuum most molds will die within a few days anyway.

What I wasn't clear about was your aging process. It seems very quick. I know it's difficult... but give it time (eventually with enough cheese in the cave meant for different target dates, you will have enough not to be tempted to open any too early because there is always something ready...).  Cheddar really takes advantage of two enzymatic processes: proteolysis and lipolysis. the breakdown and conversion of proteins and fat lipids. These processes just need their time. This is why an aged cheddar has such great texture (proteolysis) and sharpness (lipolysis). These processes continue well after any bacteria died off in the cheese. Be patient; it's worth it.
The other thing I wasn't clear about was your war with the rind... Rind and mold are good for the cheese. They protect it from drying out too early and from pathogens. Rind also give the cheese much of its character in flavor and aroma. Growing a rind is an art form... the wilder the better   If you don't want to worry about it and just want very clean cheddar, wait 2-4 days after brining and vacuum it (essentially prevents the growth of rind bacteria, keeps it soft and protects it from drying out). Otherwise, let the rind grow and don't kill it, cut it and try to remove it constantly. It's like chopping a tree while watering it at the same time. you can gain better rind control and be more intentional about how you want it to grow if you wash the cheese or spray it a few times with a solution that has your favorite rind bacteria mix.

Would love to see photos of your cheese by the way. Sounds like you are on the right track!