Author Topic: Coagulation, Lactic, Semi - General Discussion  (Read 5206 times)

iratherfly

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Re: Coagulation, Lactic, Semi - General Discussion
« Reply #15 on: February 01, 2011, 09:45:45 PM »
Yes, this is why I use a ricotta basket ot slotted spoon instead of a ladle, so I grab a little fat with each but also so it doesn't overfill with liquid and the butterfat chunks floats off the ladle back to the vat.

Your cheese is (as always) gorgeous. How long is this wash?  Kind of an Epoisses in St Mercellin shoes :)

Are you making it here or upstate?

Oude Kaas

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Re: Coagulation, Lactic, Semi - General Discussion
« Reply #16 on: February 02, 2011, 12:23:05 AM »
I make them here with milk from upstate.

Offline ArnaudForestier

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Re: Coagulation, Lactic, Semi - General Discussion
« Reply #17 on: February 02, 2011, 12:31:36 AM »
I make them here with milk from upstate.

I'm an epoisse freak, my wife is a St. Marcellin freak (OK, so am I).  We've effectively tilted with the pic from the last page, Jos. 

Yes, yes, I am concentrating on tomme, then likely reblochon to eat something in the meantime.  But...uh, say...for future reference.  Can you share something of your process?  Please? 
- Paul

OudeKaas

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Re: Coagulation, Lactic, Semi - General Discussion
« Reply #18 on: February 02, 2011, 12:33:09 AM »
FYI, my preferred milk for those is the whole milk from Skytop brand, non-homogenized of course, gently pasteurized, organic and grass-fed -and it's local too.  I am not suggesting you replace your raw milk but for testing purposes if you want to try it - I get it at whole foods and since we live so close to each other, I am sure your Whole Foods have it too. 1 gallon + 1/8 tsp CalCl2 gives me about 2Lb. worth of cheese which is very high.

After some consideration, I chose Skytop Farms pasteurized grass-fed non-homogenized organic whole milk for last weekend's "mini-tommes" and am very pleased with the results so far. Got what I thought was a good yield but nowhere near what you are indicating!

Having heard all of the 'organic means ultra-pasteurized' chitchat here (and seeing it designated so on so many labels) I was leery enough to call them before buying and the nice lady who answered indicated that they use HTST or 'flash' pasteurization only.

Oude Kaas

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Re: Coagulation, Lactic, Semi - General Discussion
« Reply #19 on: February 02, 2011, 03:16:53 AM »
I'll try to post my procedure within the next few days.

iratherfly

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Re: Coagulation, Lactic, Semi - General Discussion
« Reply #20 on: February 02, 2011, 06:20:37 AM »
Brandnetel - That milk is fantastic. The yield I mentioned was for Chaource type cheese - NOT Tomme. Tomme would naturally give you far lower yield. (The harder the cheese, the lower the yield).

I am actually surprised that their milk is HTST. It sure doesn't act like it. It acts as if the process is much more gentle. The curd quality and enzymatic activity on it feel better than some raw milk I've purchased!  Really? HTST???

As for the ultra pasteurized stuff; That's not small local farms like Skytop. it's the national organic brands that do that. They are monsters who jack up the price of milk for their organic claims but really practice all the stuff that the supermarket dairies do. Feed cows silage and corn instead of grass, design a flavorless diet, mix milk from thousands of cows that are hundreds of miles away and ...ultra pasteurize it to give it a 4-6 week shelf time and allow cross country trucking (forget about local) and its slower move in supermarket stocks due to its premium price. It is overly sweet and feels more like Pramalat UHT milk than real milk.. Terrible stuff.  The only difference is no antibiotics and hormones used and the corn and silage feed are organic. Total scam. 

Mersunwea

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Re: Coagulation, Lactic, Semi - General Discussion
« Reply #21 on: February 03, 2011, 10:51:14 PM »
Thanks Lynuxboy!! (and everyone contributing) :D
I will follow your method. Frankly speaking even for a newcomer like me (but adicted already to make cheese), the thick yogurt curd seemed weird (and frustrating). I will come back with results! :-)
Thanks again