This cheese is made from 2 gallons, and was pressed in a mold that is not quite a perfect cylinder and measures: Height: 6" and Diameter - bottom: 5" and top: 6.5". (I modeled it off of Ricki Carroll's small basket mold that comes with her hard cheeses kit, which is nearly identical measurements but not tall enough to hold a 2 gallon batch of curds). I poked small holes in my mold, spaced about 1/2" all around (including bottom). It seemed to drain fine.
My pressing schedule was based on Carroll's Farmhouse Cheddar kit recipe, which asks for 10 lbs/ 15 minutes, 20 lbs/12 hrs, and 20 lbs/12 hrs (with flipping in between). That's what I did. This recipe, if you aren't familiar with it, I *think* is a "cheater" Cheddar recipe- meaning, there is no formal Cheddaring step. After you cook curds (30 min + 5 min rest), you drain curds 1 hr, then mill, salt and press.
I noticed in the same author's book, there is an identical recipe that has a different pressing schedule (10 lb/10min + 20 lb/10min + 50lb/12 hrs). Not sure what to make of that!
Your comments raise questions: Do all cheeses out of the press shrink and bulge out some- or are mine unusual? Out of the press, this cheddar was about 4" tall, and close to 5" diameter; now, after a week of drying, it's 2.5" tall and about 6" diameter (bulged out in the middle, as you see in the pics). Am I not pressing hard enough, or perhaps not cooking curds properly? Or perhaps I am drying too quickly- I just learned that I am supposed to be drying the cheese in higher humidity than I thought ( I think?)- so I first had it drying at 65F and 55% humidity, and then moved it (after cracking!) to ~62F/85% humidity.
You mentioned "ripening container"- do you air dry your cheese in a container regularly, or is that just for a softer type of cheese, like your Havarti?
And lastly, you say you use yogurt to start your colby- meaning, I think, that even if I had made my cheddar entirely with thermo starter alone, it might have turned out just fine? Interesting- that's good to know!
Thanks for your comments!!