Hi all
I've been making Chaource reasonably successfully as follows:
7 litres (1.7 US gallons) of raw cow's milk at 25 degrees C - about 77F, and pH about 6.7 and titratable acidity at 18 Dornic
Add starter culture: Danisco Choozit MA4002 as ice cubes
Add mold former P. candidum, about 1/4 tsp
Incubate at this temp (about 10-12 hours i.e. overnight) until pH drops to about 6.5 and TA = 25 Dornic
Add rennet - about 0.5 ml. any less than that and all the cream ends up in a layer at the top
Incubate at 25 degrees C for a further 7 -8 hours, until pH is about 4.5, TA is about 60 Dornic, a whey layer has formed and the curd is beginning to come away from the edges of the pan.
Scoop whole curds into crottin hoops and leave for 12 hours
Turn cheeses and re-mould for a further 8 hours
Remove from mould, salt, and store at 12 C / 54 F for about 10 days until mould bloom forms
Store in fridge
These cheeses are quite nice and fresh tasting but I want to take the taste to a new level. My questions are:
1. Does anybody use PLA and / or Flora danica or equivalents such as PROBAT? If so is it in addition to the MA / MM culture or instead of?
2. Do people put a pinch of Geotrichum into the mix? I've just ordered some Geo 17.
I'd appreciate some idea of your experience of flavour improvement.
thanks
J