My First Blue... and first post

[vacant3]

Hey folks,

Been lurking for a few months and finally decided to post. I've made a few cheeses (cheddar, montasio, gouda, romano, gruyere, and manchego - pics below) and last week decided to try my first blue - a Fourme D'Ambert from "200 Easy Homemade Cheese Recipes." 7 days in and it's getting a nice blue mold. I also made my own cheese press, and made a 5.5 inch mold using a new stainless steel toilet roll holder (yes, seriously.... http://www.amazon.com/Toilet-Paper-Roll-Holder-Stainless/dp/tags-on-product/B0000TQFVY) that's been cut in half and drilled with holes. Working great so far! You can make 2 molds for around 30 bucks...
Anyway, just wanted to introduce myself and thank all of you for being on this site - all the questions and answers have been invaluable.

Cheers!

V

[Tea]

It looks like you have a excellent lot of cheeses aging there.  Congrats on the press too.  As long as it works who cares what it is made out of.

Hope the blue turns out for you too.

[vacant3]

Thanks Tea! They seem to be aging fine in my converted Wine Cooler - unfortunately (as we all experience) I won't have a clue if they turned out for a few more months. Fingers crossed - and thanks for the words of encouragement!

V

[smilingcalico]

Hey V,
  A cheese to you for the amazon link.  I think amazon will be selling a few more of those because of you!  Ingenuity is a virtue to home cheesemakers.  Best wishes.

[vacant3]

Thanks for the cheese Smiling! Bit of a warning - cutting that stainless steel with a metal blade and a jigsaw can sure get loud. Wear earmuffs!

[MrsKK]

Lots of ingenious people out here - you've joined the crowd.  Glad you are a full-fledged member and have quit your lurking...nasty habit, spying on us while you nibble on your cheese! 

[vacant3]

It's true - secretly spying on people whilst cheese nibbling is a strange fetish of mine...
But I'm seeking help. 

[MrsKK]

That's what we're here for!

Actually, I think this is one of the most co-dependent self-help groups around.  But is that a bad thing?

[Boofer]

Very novel mold creation. Welcome to the forum, V.

I will watch with fascination for developments with your Fourme d'Ambert. Seems like your DIY mold is ideally suited for this cheese style.

Here's another source for the holder. A little cheaper and a tad bit longer.

-Boofer-

[vacant3]

Thanks for the cheaper link Boofer! So far my fourme is aging nicely and has wonderful mold growing all over it that I keep down a bit by rubbing it in. One question I have - do I wash/scrub the mold off when it's ready to foil? Does it matter? I ask because all the fourmes I've seen have a clean rind.

[Boofer]

Thanks for the cheaper link Boofer! So far my fourme is aging nicely and has wonderful mold growing all over it that I keep down a bit by rubbing it in. One question I have - do I wash/scrub the mold off when it's ready to foil? Does it matter? I ask because all the fourmes I've seen have a clean rind.

I'm new to the blues and would like to know as well.

I would like to know whether brushing or salting is the best technique for keeping a thinner, less-developed rind in blue cheeses like the Fourme d'Ambert. I defer to the more advanced opinions.

-Boofer-

[Aris]

Dry salted blue cheeses tends to have thinner rinds like Bleu D' Auvergne and Fourme d'Ambert compared to Stilton and their rind is very edible unlike Stilton. Also being wrapped in foil helps to get a thin wet rind. While Gorgonzola, after dry salting,  is washed with brine during aging. I dont know when and how many times they brine wash it. This is why Gorgonzola has almost no rind and has the best tasting outer surface i've ever tasted, taste better than the paste itself imo. With Roquefort, they wrap it in aluminum foil after 1 month in the cave and age it for 3 months. This is the reason Roquefort has no rind and is moist. Some cheeses use Natamycin to inhibit mold growth to get a clean rind.

[Boofer]

Dry salted blue cheeses tends to have thinner rinds like Bleu D' Auvergne and Fourme d'Ambert compared to Stilton and their rind is very edible unlike Stilton. Also being wrapped in foil helps to get a thin wet rind. While Gorgonzola, after dry salting,  is washed with brine during aging. I dont know when and how many times they brine wash it. This is why Gorgonzola has almost no rind and has the best tasting outer surface, taste better than the paste itself imo. With Roquefort, they wrap it in aluminum foil after 1 month and age it for 3 months. This is the reason Roquefort has no rind and moist. Some cheeses use Natamycin to inhibit mold growth to get a clean rind.

What is it about wrapping in foil as opposed to wrapping in some kind of cheese paper? Wouldn't both techniques smother the blue? Perhaps that's the idea.

-Boofer-

[Aris]

I think cheese paper will make the cheese breath and will make the cheese form a rind. Using foil or air tight package, you'll deprive the blue mold with oxygen. This in turn will give the blue cheese a different flavor profile. Here's a quote from faribaultdairy
"In order to create the “complex, complicated yet delightfully intimate”™ flavor of Amablu® the cheese are carefully ripened in three distinct phases. The first phase is the initial ripening which takes place in the Salting Room. During this phase the P. rocquefortii becomes active and spreads throughout the cheese as colorless mycelia – the vegetative stage.

 The second phase of ripening occurs in the Cure Cave. During this phase the blue cheese wheels are placed in special food grade plastic crates that allow the air to circulate freely around and through the cheese (the cheese wheels are “punched” with special stainless steel needles to provide openings to the interior of the cheese). The environment in the Cure Cave is ideal for promoting the growth of the blue veining. The Cure Cave has the delightfully fresh fragrance of an earthy garden in spring.

 As the veining grows the P. rocuqefortii mature and develop fruiting bodies (sporocysts). It is the fruiting bodies that give blue cheese its characteristic blue green veining.

 After ripening to the desired degree the cheese are placed in special hygienic pouches, sealed and moved to the Ageing Cave. During this phase the P. rocuefortii is deprived of oxygen and “goes to sleep”. Flavor development slowly continues as complex interactions occur between the starter culture bacteria derivatives and the mold metabolites. (See Frank Kosikowski’s classic “Cheese and Fermented Milk Foods” for a thorough account of the processes – and some pictures of our caves!)

 The sleeping mold slowly loses its color in the absence of oxygen, going from blue – green to green to yellow. Amablu “St. Pete’s Select” is cave aged over 100 days. So, if your wheel of St. Pete’s has yellowish veining it’s simply assuring you that it is well aged! Allow the cheese to “breathe” at room temperature for 30 minutes and watch the blue green color magically restore as the P. roquefortii awakens."

[vacant3]

Dry salted blue cheeses tends to have thinner rinds like Bleu D' Auvergne and Fourme d'Ambert compared to Stilton and their rind is very edible unlike Stilton. Also being wrapped in foil helps to get a thin wet rind. While Gorgonzola, after dry salting,  is washed with brine during aging. I dont know when and how many times they brine wash it. This is why Gorgonzola has almost no rind and has the best tasting outer surface i've ever tasted, taste better than the paste itself imo. With Roquefort, they wrap it in aluminum foil after 1 month in the cave and age it for 3 months. This is the reason Roquefort has no rind and is moist. Some cheeses use Natamycin to inhibit mold growth to get a clean rind.

Interesting Aris. The recipe I used for Fourme D'Ambert doesn't include dry salting - just brining, air drying, and then ripening in the cave and allowing the molds to cover the surface. Do you suggest I start brine washing it or simply let the molds take over?