My #1 Taleggio

[Boofer]

Whats your technique to fliping when using such a large mould?
I find it really difficult using large moulds with soft curds without the aid of cheese cloth.
It seems that once I take it out it spreads out and no longer fit the mold so It tends to break a bit and I have to press it back into shape.

Yeah, this was my first Taleggio and I tried to use a too-tall brick mold. I knew it had to drain really well before I unmolded it. I did attempt to unmold it too early and it started to collapse because it was still too wet. I quickly got it back into the mold, but I sliced a little off one edge because the mold was too tall and I couldn't easily handle the very soft curd. Yeesh! How aggravating and frustrating!

You are right...when I tried to flip the cheese in the mold it had to travel the height of the mold to reach the other needlepoint web. Achieving that simple task without having the curd try to stack up on one end, or at least lean towards one end, was a genuine challenge. Having it fall straight through the mold to the other open end where the webbing was proved to be a difficult task. That's why I say the mold was too tall for this effort. Something along the lines of no perceivable "fall" or, at the most, portions of an inch or under 3 cm. As it was, I was trying to fall some 4 inches without trashing the brick. That too was trouble. Trying to flip a brick.  Remember, it didn't become two cheeses until it had drained and was just about to come out of the mold.

If I do this again, I will use either the two Camembert molds I have or I'll buy some real Taleggio square molds. The very soft cheeses are something I haven't concentrated on. I've been primarily focused on semi-soft, semi-hard, and hard cheeses (Esrom, Goutaler, Tomme, Beaufort).

-Boofer-

[Boofer]

Hmmmm . . . so I notice you cut this in half to make 2 cheeses? Curious to hear how it matures.

I recently (as described elsewhere here) started some tomme-ish cheese in a taller 'hard cheese' cylindrical mold and cut in half to yield 2 shorter cheeses, lightly pressing again afterwards with them each separately wrapped in cheesecloth to try to help rind development. Despite this 'finishing' pressing, I have noticed that the cut sides behave very differently than the others. One I steeped in beer and the cut side absorbed much more liquid and became much darker. On the others, mold has grown OK on the other sides, but much less on the cut side.

Would be interested to hear if you have any similar experiences with this. . . .

There is a difference in the cut versus the non-cut sides. I don't know why because there was no real aging or drying that occurred after the cut. The cut side holds up really well and the opposite side sags and oozes at this point 26 days later. The other two sides seem to behave more properly, holding up, not sagging or oozing, but still seeming to slightly crinkle with the culturing/affinage. I have pics that I will post later that I snapped this morning.

-Boofer-

[OudeKaas]

Trying to flip a brick. 

OK, (a) full disclosure: you made me google this and (b) "I don't know what you're talking about, officer - linuxboy told me this was just P. Candidum". Lol, I am going to get a totally undeserved reputation if I keep falling for these *cough* opportunities *cough* but the humor is hard to resist . . .

Thanks for sharing the update on the cut sides difference continuing also. You will likely have noted my own cut Tomme reports here. I don't think I would cut an already pressed cheese again based on my own experience.

[Boofer]

Trying to flip a brick. 

OK, (a) full disclosure: you made me google this and (b) "I don't know what you're talking about, officer - linuxboy told me this was just P. Candidum". Lol, I am going to get a totally undeserved reputation if I keep falling for these *cough* opportunities *cough* but the humor is hard to resist . . .

Thanks for sharing the update on the cut sides difference continuing also. You will likely have noted my own cut Tomme reports here. I don't think I would cut an already pressed cheese again based on my own experience.

Okay...now you made me google it! No, no, no...I REALLY meant to flip the cheese brick physically.  I do get the humor, but I felt I had to be very clear here. We're talking dairy product, not green produce. Some folks may read this too literally.

Well, now that I've taken the fun out of all that, let's proceed. I too will not be cutting a pressed cheese even though it wasn't pressed. For some strange reason the cut side doesn't have the same character as the other three sides. Eh, it was worth a try and I did get educated in the process.

-Boofer-

[Boofer]

I've seen some examples of Taleggio here on the forum. I've sampled Taleggio and thought it was pretty tasty.

Here's my "problem": the Taleggio cheese that members have made here are firmer and more towards semi-soft rather than soft as the Taleggio I sampled. On iGourmet.com, I found Taleggio shown in their photo as a young cheese. You can see by the D.O.P. picture of the boy with milk pails on the rind that they are the same cheese. The ripened pic is the one I sampled. Sorry for the look of the younger pic, but I had to flip it upside-down to compare the boy with the milk pails.

I'm wondering what the difference in age is between what I sampled and what the "younger" cheese is.

I wrapped one of my cheeses today in cheese paper and stored it in the regular fridge which is probably around 35F. It is at the 33 day mark. I know that the 40 day mark is the proper point in time to get into the Taleggio, but I felt I had to take this step today. Later this afternoon I will sample the other remaining cheese that is still in the ripening box. The rind looks on the verge of being out of my control at this point with a lot of grays, blacks and some orange and white. There is some ooze visible in a gap in the saggy skin.

Does anyone know what that rind covering is that has the printing and pictures of the boy with milk pails? It is inedible. It seems to hold the soft curd together and protect it from infection.

I will approach the tasting this afternoon with an open mind and the knowledge gained from doing this first Taleggio. I'm not even sure it can be given that name.

-Boofer-

[Boofer]

I just happened to notice that my "Taleggio" has been wrapped up and virtually forgotten in the main fridge keeper drawer for the past two weeks. Oh oh. I may be in trouble here. I will check it after work tonight.

-Boofer-

[OudeKaas]

CHEESE EMERGENCY! Let us know how the 'patient' fares, very curious . . . . .

[Boofer]

A surprise. No, the rind didn't overtake the entire cheese.

The taste is creamy, slightly salty, a little drier than I expected, a little musty. Overall, very nice.

I wouldn't classify this as a Taleggio, chiefly because the creamy, ooziness isn't there. With the genuine Taleggio I tasted recently, that cheese had a particular stickiness like very soft taffy.

-Boofer-

[ANDREARK]

Why would someone use TA50 and LB340 for Taleggio?

[Boofer]

Wow, a month later! Unwrapping this cheese I really wasn't sure what I would find. The first pic looks pretty nasty. Then I cut into it. Okay, not too bad inside. Trimmed, the paste looks very nice.

There was no odor of ammonia. The paste was smooth and creamy, a little crumbly in places. The main problem was too much salt. The salt level didn't seem to stop the rind from developing a colorful community. I found the salt level too much to continue enjoying this cheese. The remainder will be donated to the compost bin.

I learned a few things from this experience and for those bits of knowledge, I am grateful.

-Boofer-

[iratherfly]

It is surprisingly white and crumbly. Are you using homogenized milk? 
Why are you taking off all the rind? It helps the cheese stay alive.  It seems to me that the cheese was wrapped and the rind had suffocated and stopped working properly.  The best practice with Tallegio is to put them in a wooden box and turn them once in a while. They won't dry and become better in time.  Also, by the looks of it I would try either slightly less acidification or a different acidifying culture on your next make.  Generally though, it looks really nice!

[Boofer]

The rind was only removed from the piece I was sampling. I think the relatively high level of salt inhibited the culture action. So, I can't wrap a cheese like this in cheese paper and stick it in the fridge? When I did that, I assumed whatever development was going to occur had and now I'd just hold it in stasis.

Is there anyone out there who has developed a Taleggio with a soft, sticky, taffy-like paste? It actually oozes, like it's melting on a hot day, but it's not like Brie.

-Boofer-

[mtncheesemaker]

Boofer, mine came out pretty well. Unfortunately, I think I went into a trance after I cut it, 'cause I can't find a picture of the inside!

[iratherfly]

Pam - GORGEOUS!!!!! Would love to see the inside!

Boofer - what temperature was your cave and how long did you age it?