Vinegar

[MrsKK]

This is just an observation, but I've found that if I use natural cider vinegar with the "mother" in it, it takes much longer for mold to return to the surface of the cheese I have cleaned.  As opposed to grocery store cider vinegar that has no "mother".

Has anyone else noticed this?

[smilingcalico]

I haven't used cider vinegar in this fashion.  I'm curious as to what makes up the mother.  It might make sense if the mother has cultures that for a time can out compete other molds.

[darius]

The ACV that forms a mother does so because it contains live cultures, and is raw and unfiltered. Bragg's is one well-known brand. I started some fruit wines from scratch last fall, with the intent to turn the finished wine into vinegars. You can buy real fermented fruit vinegars here in the US but they are not very common... and they often cost more than a bottle of wine.

[Boofer]

This is just an observation, but I've found that if I use natural cider vinegar with the "mother" in it, it takes much longer for mold to return to the surface of the cheese I have cleaned.  As opposed to grocery store cider vinegar that has no "mother".

Has anyone else noticed this?

Another one of those elusive "tricks" that help polish the cheesemaking technique. I haven't tried it but it certainly sounds reasonable. I will be using Bragg's to see if it does indeed hold them off longer.

-Boofer-

[MrsKK]

I've got several bottles of wine that I brewed, but I don't use much of it, so I bought a new bottle of vinegar with the mother and intend to turn some wine to vinegar.

any tips on doing so, Darius?

[darius]

Karen, I wrote about making vinegar on my blog last year... http://2footalligator.blogspot.com/2010/06/homemade-apple-cider-vinegar.html

I put wine in a wide-mouth jar so there's more surface area, cover with fine cheesecloth, and let the natural airborne acetobacter do it's job. I think adding some of the mother hastens the process.

HTH