Boofer's Tomme #2 -- complex rind

[OudeKaas]

Wow, Boofer, that really is quite a change. Very interesting to see what seems to me to be a transition from essentially all geo to all linens, wit just a few spots or underlay of white geo remaining. At least that is what it looks like to my untrained eye.

This solid orang-y coloration with a little white now seems familiar to me from some commercial cheeses I have seen, like .. . .hmm. I want to say St. Nectaire but the pics I am finding of that online now seem to lean more in the white/grey range. I have a clear image of such a cheese from a recent shoppng trip, with a deeply indented wavy orange rind that showed white only in the depths of the 'valleys'.

[george]

That IS very pretty.  I'd stand in line for that.   

[linuxboy]

You nailed it, Boofer. When you get that pH down, the rind can grow and develop, and then die off and change color. Gives flavor, aroma, and protection. Keep it up. That looks great!

[Boofer]

Thanks, linuxboy. That's encouraging.

The rind seems to be holding its own.

-Boofer-

[Buck47]

Boffer,

I've been following your work on Tomme's intently. Your photos are excelant and very helpful visual.

Do you have a specific taste your are trying for ? Am I correct in thinking this will be an eatable rind?

Must your Tommes be kept separate from other cheeses to avoid cross contamination?

Sorry for all the questions, But I'm just fascinated with your achievement.

Regards: john

[Boofer]

Thanks for your interest, John.

I'm afraid this is uncharted territory for me. I said in some earlier thread that linuxboy gave me a box of matches...I'm not sure what kind of a fire I've got going here, but it should be interesting.

Specific taste? No idea. I do have some ideas about what I DON'T want: acidic, crumbly, bitter, etc.

I think I penciled in a first taste date of around Halloween. I'll see then if I'm somewhere in my unimagined ballpark.

As far as keeping my cheeses separate, I don't have the luxury of putting them into their own cave environment. They have to learn to get along. Actually, these are two hard cheeses and I'm hoping the occasional rind wiping will keep the cultures in their places and not out of control. The pic shows my current cave environment: Tomme on the top rack out in the open, Beaufort below it in its minicave.

I just made my second Esrom Wednesday and, while it's air-drying now, I don't know where I'm going to put it. It has to go into the cave somewhere. I've been holding off buying another mini-fridge for a second cave, but it may be time now.

I try to capture some of my progress in pictures, both for my benefit down the road and as an aid to anyone else venturing along the cheese trail.

I suppose the rind might be edible. It will have received TLC all the way. We'll see.

-Boofer-

[Boofer]

I decided I should seal this cheese and continue aging. I hope the aging does proceed satisfactorily even with the vacuum sealing.

-Boofer-

[Helen]

Halloween? That like... in forever. Such patience.

I made my tomme a couple of weeks before yours and was thinking that I could give it a first try in a couple of months. I am not as patient as you are.

Now that it is sealed, will you keep it in your cave or will you move it to your regular fridge?

[Boofer]

Yes, I will keep it in the cave for better aging. The way that I hope it works out is I should soon belong to the Boofer Cheese-of-the-Month Club with something coming ripe on a regular basis. 

Actually, next fall quite a few of the cheeses in the cave should be ready. Patience is the key. I've tried some of my cheeses when they were too young and the experience was disappointing. So now I wait.

I am trying to make occasional young cheeses to eat early. I've got an Esrom and a Taleggio that are in progress right now and will be ready much sooner than Halloween.

-Boofer-

[Boofer]

Okay, okay, forget what I said about patience. As I was changing the bag and drying the accumulated whey off the wheel, I succumbed and cut the cheese .

First of all, there was a lot of wetness inside the bag. The B. linens that I had carefully tended was awash around the wheel. A yellow broth, if you will. That's disturbing but something I've seen with most of my cheeses and also with commercial cheeses. I'm enjoying a chunk of Royal Blue Stilton right now and there is quite a bit of wetness inside its packaging.

My first taste of the Tomme was a bit of sharpness which faded rather quickly, probably as my palate became accustomed to it. It was creamy and melted easily on my tongue. There was a complex flavor that I hadn't enjoyed in a cheese lately (except of course for the Stilton). I didn't have crackers, wine, beer, or anything else with it. It was all on its own to disappoint or delight me. It delighted me. It is three months old at this point and I have resealed most of it for continued affinage. The Old Man gets a taste today for lunch.

With this benchmark, I am certainly looking forward to my third Tomme, the wine-washed experiment. So far the rind on that one looks quite pleasing.

-Boofer-

[JeffHamm]

Well done!  I've been watching your threads on your rind experiments.  Very interesting, and glad to hear it's producing the goods. 

- Jeff