I beg anyone for help!

[Homestead]

I am just getting going on lactic mold ripened cheeses.  I realize how little I know about this area of cheese making but I figure I might as well jump in.  As I'm making a lactic Chevre type cheese with added pc....I realize that I have no idea what to do if anything to the rind/mold as it is aging....so that is my first question.  Second is...I would love to roll the cheese in herbs and didn't know when or if I could do this to a mold ripened cheese.  Third....can mold ripened cheese be eaten at anytime....granted I know that there are peak times to eat any cheese.  I really need all the help I can get .....thanks again and God Bless

[mtncheesemaker]

I make this type of cheese often. I just add PC and a pinch of Geo to my regular chevre recipe, drain in molds for 24 hours, air dry at room temp for 24 hours, then put in my +/- 50F fridge in an aging box. I kind of pat the rinds down after the mold is growing and turn them regularly. Important to keep any moisture wiped out of the box. I start eating at 2-3 weeks and keep going to 6-7 weeks, depending on how long they last!
This is a very easy delicious cheese, esp if you have nice fresh milk. Also good made from sheep's milk.
Pam

[Homestead]

Thank you so much!  I'm so worried about them!  I have both raw Jersey and Sannen milk.  I made these with the Jersey though.  Can you eat them really young....also is it possible to roll in herbs before they "bloom"....thank you!!! 

[mtncheesemaker]

I've never done that. Why don't you just try one and see what happens? I'm not a big fan of additives to cheese.
2 weeks is as young as I would eat them; it takes that long for them to kind of dry a bit and mature. The mold has to have a certain amount of time to have an effect.

[steffb503]

How does this cheese compare to a Camembert?
Rind? Taste ? Or is it closer to a Chevre?
and when you say PC and  a pinch of Geo is that all going in at the same time along with the rennet and meso like Chevre?

[george13]

Mountain Maiden,
the recipe board of the cheese forum has plenty of good references, one of which may fit your situation.  But please explain, the "pc" addition, was it added at the onset of cheese setting or sprayed as a mist after draining.  If I were making a mould rippened cheese with herbs, I would do an initial drain in a bag, stir in salt and herbs, then shape and allow the mould/yeast to work (that is providing you innoculated with pc at time of setting culture).  If not, once shaped, mist the cheese with pc solution.  The more you age the more the flavor, the more enzyme breakdown and softer texture, which makes for a really good cheese.
Good luck

[mtncheesemaker]

I add the PC and Geo to the milk, when I add the meso, then the rennet. Coagulate overnight (12-14 hours), then drain in molds. They are somewhere between a chevre and camembert, kind of tangy, and change as they age.
This last batch I made were painted with an ash paste after they were dry, and the mold started growing through in 24 hours. This is one at just under 3 weeks.

[Boofer]

I can't say that the first two pics look appetizing, but that third pic looks wonderful. What an amazing transformation.

-Boofer-

[Homestead]

I added the pc during the inoculation part.  One thing I noted was a different curd texture than I had been getting without the Pc added.  I had pretty firm curd so I drained in molds overnight then flipped and drained for about 36 hours total.  I now am drying them and salted them as well as added the herbs to the outside of one.  I didn't realize there was a recipe section like that on here!  Thanks for the info.  Any ideas what to do next...  P.S.  I didn't add any geo although I probably should have for the rind....

[iratherfly]

Can you share your recipe so we can figure it out?  Jersey milk develops a different texture than goat's milk.  It seems you are making a Chaource and not a Chévre then.

You need just a tiny touch of Geo vs the PC here. The PC would not effect the texture of your initial curd. Its effects are only felt as the cheese ages. Technically this cheese can be eaten fresh but given the PC you should really wait at least 14 days (or 10 days if really small). You can go up to 45 days if you age it properly, and the real art of this type of cheese is in the aging. The make itself is easy and usually trouble-free.

If your curd is stiff as you say, you might have used too much rennet. This is a semi-lactic so you would use about 3 drops of rennet (1/16th teaspoon) per gallon.

I would not roll this in herbs and flavorants. This is a practice best applied with fresh un-aged cheese. In the case of the aged ones, it will only mask the natural flavors of the milk and stand in the way of the developing rind. At least, perfect this cheese first without any extra flavors or aromatics so that you can troubleshoot it.

Let us know what you are trying to achieve and your recipe. Let's perfect it!

[Homestead]

Thank you all for the help!  I have done this before quite often without adding the mold additions.  I still have not seen anything show up yet on the surface.  I just made another batch with added geo and b. linens....so I guess we will see what all happens.  I made them both about the same but the last one has much more of a semi-lactic make than lactic.  I am so new to the world of bloomy cheese so any advice or pitfalls to watch out for is very much appreciated!   Thanks to all....I think I will post pics to see what everyones thoughts are....

[iratherfly]

any luck yet?

[Tomer1]

The fresh herbs will spoil for the 14+ days it needs to develope the white rind and age a bit.

[iratherfly]

I would avoid herbs altogether. Herbs are nice with fresh cheese but if you age and rind it they are pointless and totally take cheese of the focus. Especially if you have great milk that the cheese can show for. This will totally overwhelm the delicacy of good milk. Why mask it?