Zoey's gouda #4

[Zoey]

I went and got myself some milk yesterday, and it has been sitting outside (temperature very near zero celcius) awaiting this evening's cheese making session.

This far, I have the following:

My old recipe, I'm recreating this one:
http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,2369.msg22138.html#msg22138

35 liters of raw milk directly from a farm. This time I asked for the fat percentage, and it turns out they have it regularly checked and this time of year it is 4,4 per cent. Great. As I posted elsewhere on this forum, they also do regular listeria and other microflora checks, and the farmer said he can practically guarantee his milk does not have listeria, e. coli etc. Nice to know, really. And since he's almost a friend, I can really believe this and if he would make findings, I'm sure he would report them to me before it was time to cut my cheese.

So, tonight, this really good quality milk, some store-bought buttermilk and some local pharmacy rennet will turn to gouda in my hands.

Unlike the previous ones, this one will definately be waxed. I've experienced that mold will start to develop on my cheeses when they are around 10 days or so. This is why I'm hoping to get a head on the protection and wax it when it is a week old at most. Hopefully it is dry enough by then.

[Boofer]

Fingers crossed.   

-Boofer-

[bmckee561]

Good Luck Zoey!

I just found a local dairy that sells Raw Milk by contract only.  It only costs $20.00 to join and I can purchase as much as I need.  I am a real novice at Cheese, but intend on making many different varieties.  I also make Wine and Beer at home.  Unfortunelty I can find no local source of Goats milk in my area.

My first wheel of cheese was a Gouda and I vacuum sealed it when it dryed sufficiently (I hope).

Salute!   

[Zoey]

It's in brine now.

My records are pretty much similar as last time. It took two hours precisely to warm all the milk to 28C. I did it in four buckets just as last time, and the first two buckets were ready to cut when I finished warming the milk. The washing part was the trickiest - I've made a habit of combining two buckets, then washing the curds to 38C, but now, after doing this for three batches, it struck me that it would probably be easier to just wash each bucket separately, and i'm wondering why bother doing the combining part. Well, this time I still did it, maybe next time without (only that changes the recipe quite a bit because it takes time and my time measures have been "go to the next step when you're ready with the previous", so I hope there won't be any side effects).

This time I had some problems with the first curds. Maybe the washing took too much time, since it seemed that the curds were a bit tough (rubbery) when finished.  When put into the form, they really quickly made a quite tough matting, that wasn't easily reformed anymore. The second curds (buckets 3 & 4) were really wonderful an soft. Interesting to see how this develops while aging...

It has quite some character this time. But that's okay - I'm going to wax it anyway so there's not so much concern about spores getting to the ridges of the cheese. And also - now I have something to compare my next cheeses to, because I'm going to buy some kadova form in the near future...

[susanky]

Lovely cheese!  Looks tasty.  How long will you age it?
Susan

[Zoey]

Susanky, I was thinking 60 days. Well, we'll see.
The previous ones I've cut about a week early compared to what I planned.

Well, my strategy is, when I get anxious, I reward myself by making more cheese instead of cutting open existing ones.

[FarmerJd]

Well, my strategy is, when I get anxious, I reward myself by making more cheese instead of cutting open existing ones.

Same strategy here.

[Boofer]

Well, my strategy is, when I get anxious, I reward myself by making more cheese instead of cutting open existing ones.

Same strategy here.

Hey, more is better...until the cheese cave bursts open and you can't close the door anymore. Oh yeah, get another cheese cave! What a concept!

I'm in the same camp. Since I'm not aiming towards a commercial endeavor, this is all for my me...and of course my wife, my Yorkie, and my family. That means, if the make is successful and not a total shocking, disappointing surprise (yeah, I've seen some of those.), I have little treasures tucked away in the cave waiting for their turn to be opened. In the meantime, I'm like a shepherd tending his flock of cheeses...turning, wiping, watching. 

-Boofer-

[DeejayDebi]

Nice job Zoey - I like the flowing patterns on the cheese. Looks really kewl! I am getting bored with plain round or square cheeses.

I am cheesed out right now. I have cheeses coming out the zing yang and I have already added 3 caves this year 2 waist high minis, 1 cube and 1 full sized fridge. If I don't want to give up my bed I need to stop for a bit.   

[Zoey]

Thanks all!

I waxed this one at 6 days (as soon as dry to touch). It is my first waxed cheese, so I'm really curious about how it goes. So far I haven't seen any problems (the wax is yellow and a little bit opaque so I think I would see if something was growing underneath).

DJDebi, it's good to know that others find the cheese beautiful in spite of the ridges. However, I'm really looking forward to having my first Kadova brand moulds. I think that people who like "character" on their cheeses are the ones that know how to make them without character. I myself am quite sure I could make a cheese without character but haven't made one yet (lack of proper equipment), so the concept still fascinates me. I'm sure it will be less of a question after I manage it a couple of times.

I've placed a few wishes for christmas. I'm hoping to get some moulds that fit into the fruit compartments of my fridge optimally. I made some measurements and realized that the lower compartment is 12,5C and the upper is 11,0C, so these would be really great for cheese making. Only my current mould arrangement makes cheeses that don't fit into the compartments (which leaves me with only a shelf of 9C to place them on).

So 9C is what I'm aging this at. Humidity is unknown, hopefully the wax makes humidity control unneccessary.