Stilton - Ripening Discussion

[TommyTW15]

Hi,

I have a Stilton which has been maturing for about 2 weeks. It smells great and is getting a good covering on mold as expected. It is however expanding very slightly in places as if gasses are building up inside. Is this normal for this type of cheese? I have never had a ballooning issue before. also the cheese has not been skewered yet.

T

[Tomer1]

No thats not normal,
Can you up a pic?

[Sailor Con Queso]

Depends on the bacteria that you used. Some cultures, like Aroma B will produce gas.

[TommyTW15]

Hi,

The only info i have on the packet is that it is single shot OVPV culture. The attached pic does not really show it up very well. It is really only very slight and i don't detect any yeasty smells so i'm keeping my fingers crossed that it doesn't get any worse.

Also i plan to skewer it at about week 3 or 4. Does that sound about right?

Regards
T

[Tomer1]

Yeah, Once the outside blue dries you can poke.

I dont really see any bloating, do you mean the uneven top to bottom portion?

[TommyTW15]

Hi,

The top and the bottom are slightly wider due to the way i sealed the rind, i had to smear it in quite a bit to seal it due to not milling the curds small enough i think. The puffing up was on the top yesterday before i turned it.

What humidity did you store yours at. I have mine in a sealed large tupperware container with a saucer of wat er inside. The hygrometer reads 80 - 85 but the inside is really damp to the point that condensation is forming inside. I worry about the conditions being too damp after loosing my Red Leicester this week to rot.

Photo attached of cave with Stiliton in its own container. The temperature is starting to get a bit too high, currently 16C max. Think i'm gonna have to keep them all a bit cooler if the summer continues to get warmer

T

T

[Tomer1]

While It was in the ripening fridge I've put it in a lided plastic box smaller then yours with the lid almost completly shut, I also had alot of condensation on the top but the cheese didnt gather moisture on the surface and the blue rind which had previously formed stayed dry.
About 3-4 weeks after poking I decided Its enough blue for my taste (I like my blue cheeses mild), The veining was maybe 60% from the core out.
I wraped it in dual layer cheese paper,put into a sealable plastic bag,
Sucked the air out and put in my regular fridge in the veg compartment where the temp is about 8-10c to age.

Its the cheese fest holiday soon so I'l be cracking on. (I made 2 X 600 grams).

[TommyTW15]

I'm definately going to have to get the temperature down then if your storing yours at 8. I have got my hands on an old fridge but the problem is it wont go higher than 6 C. Gonna have to give this some thought.

[Tomer1]

Nah dont take my approach as the right way of doing things,
I just did it because I decided to switch my cheese fridge a bit higher (Its getting really hot and its not even summer yet) because I dont want it working 24\7 to maintain 10-12c,

Most recipies call to ripen at 50f for 90 days and switch to 40f when its "ready".
I suspect it wont make it to 40f if you know what I mean

I couldnt find any notes about the optimal growing temp of PR and whether high temp might make it go to overload mode like with PC , My main goal was to retard further bluing (hense limiting oxygen) while still allowing it to go on maturing.
already tasted and smelled damn good when checked for veining with an apple corer... amm sorry Proffesional cheese tester.

[TommyTW15]

Ah i see, i thought 8 was a bit low for maturing. I think i am going to have to find a fridge that can go up to 10 - 12 c for the summer unless i can find another way to cool the cave. I have started adding ice packs but i don't think thats gonna work too well, my second idea is to find some thick slate slabs to add to bring the temperature down.

Glad yours is going well, i have to say i do like the blues strong so i don't mind if it  goes a bit mad, just don't want to end up with one big lump of blue mold.

Thanks for the help as always Tomer.

T

[Tomer1]

Glad I can help,
Followed this thread I went to check the cheeses ,Since bagging them I havent checked back.
I expected a strong amonia smell since im accually suffocating it but no,
The smell was incredible. I gave my dad a sniff and his mouth was watering. 2 weeks to crack down

[TommyTW15]

 Excellent, let me know what the final results are like.

T

[susanky]

I think i am going to have to find a fridge that can go up to 10 - 12 c for the summer unless i can find another way to cool the cave. I have started adding ice packs but i don't think thats gonna work too well, my second idea is to find some thick slate slabs to add to bring the temperature down.

Most refrigerators won't just get that warm.  But you can purchase an external thermostat to plug it into which will kick it off and on to maintain the temperature you set.  Lots of references on the forum.
Susan

[TommyTW15]

Thanks Susan, just plugged what will become my cheese fridge in and on its lowest setting its about 9 so will go about finding an overide thermostat.

T

[mcfly]

Please let me know if you do find one here in the UK Tommy. I couldn't seem to find one ?! I ended up buying a timer that switches my refrigerator off every 2 hours for 30 minutes or so..I get an average temperature of 12c-13c but if we get a warm spell I usually have to recalculate :~/

Your Stilton looks great, I have my first one at 4 weeks