Gorgonzola Dolce #52, first try

[anutcanfly]

Pierced yesterday and put back into cave.  Will continue to turn and wash rind as needed to keep the surface clean.  First testing in 2 months.

[DeejayDebi]

That's looking very nice Anut.

[anutcanfly]

I sampled the cheese that was knocked out with the skewer and it had a nice flavor, so I hoping this will be the blue I've been trying for! 

[Tomer1]

Hi Tomer,

How much? How did you like the taste with lipase in it?  So far I've always found lipase to be much too strong for my tastes, with the exception of grating cheeses.

Its still too young to open. (about 8-9 weeks now) Im sampling along the way and it tastes good. I need to check my notebook and see if I documented the make.

[anutcanfly]

If you find you like it, post your make! 

[anutcanfly]

I decided to crack this one early before it got too strong.  This cheese lost a lot of moisture when I left it in the oven for the night with the light on.  The temp went up to 85 degrees, so this cheese is more like a creamy firm cheese.  I liked the flavor, but my Sweety gave it a thumbs down.  There is an earthy quality to it that he doesn't like.  It's the same flavor that was in the Stilton that I didn't like, but much milder.  Back to the drawing board!  Except I have no idea how to create the gorgonzola that he likes?    I don't know if it's the process, the culture, or the strain of blue that's causing the problem.

[JeffHamm]

Hi anut,

It's a shame that the flavour is not quite what you were going for as the cheese itself looks really good.  Nice amount of blue and all.  Hmmm, you could try harvesting the mould from the gorgonzolla that you are trying to reproduce.  I don't make many mould ripened cheeses so I don't keep a supply of moulds at home.  So, I just harvest from a bought cheese and that's worked quite well for me so far.  That might be worth a try.

Also, it could be that it really requires a full 3 months of aging for the flavours to develop properly. 

Still, it doesn't sound like it's too too far off.  Are the undesired earth tones stronger closer to the rind or fairly equally distributed throughout the cheese?  (taste a bit of rind and if it's really strong, that's probably your primary crime scene).  If it's in the rind, it may be that you're picking up a wild mould of some sort and need to give the ripening box a really good clean and sterilization before the next one.  If it's throughout, then I would go with your guesses of process, the strain of blue mould, or the choice of cultures.

- Jeff

[anutcanfly]

Hi Jeff,

I hadn't thought of that!  I'll sample another piece and see if it's through out the cheese.  I have a wedge of the gorgonzola he likes so I can try to get the mold.  I was thinking of inoculating bread or citrus with the blue first.  I don't think the young age is the problem as I did age out the stilton 3 months and the offensive flavor became very pronounced.

While I'm thinking about off I go to sample again.

Anut

[anutcanfly]

I inoculated some bread with the gorgonzola that my Sweet likes and we will go from there.  I tasted mine side by side and flavor wise I liked my better.  But mine does have a round musty earthy quality to it and the store bought one has a brighter, very sharp flavor.  The sharpness it likely do to the differences in age.  I also tested mine eating first the rind portion and then the interior.  The earthy/musty quality was equally evident though out the cheese.  I like the overall flavor of the rind the best--did I just say I liked the rind, of a blue, the best???  That is a surprise!

[smilingcalico]

Careful, they say blue rind is like a hallucinogen.  I still don't know who "they" are.

[anutcanfly]

LOL    It will all be made clear, you just need to eat a little more rind... that's good... you'll see them soon.

[JeffHamm]

Well, it sounds like it's a pretty good cheese, certainly one worth passing around at parties!

I suppose the earthy tastes could be something in the raw milk based upon local plants/grasses, or the cultures you've used, or the strain of blue, or some combination, etc.  Once you get to try the innoculated blue, that will address one of the possibilities. 

I look forward to your next adventure in wonderland.

- Jeff

[TAMARA]

Looks fantastic!!

I am all inspired and going to make it this week...

Did you use strong or mild blue mould?

Thanks,

TAMARA

[anutcanfly]

Hi Tamara,

I used the mold that New England Cheese making has for sale.  Her site doesn't say which kind she has and I never got around to calling and asking.  I'm going to sample the cheese fairly soon and see if it just needed to age longer for the best flavor.  I'll post the results.  I used this mold for the Fourme d' Ambert I made a while ago and I wasn't impressed with the cheese while young, but loved it after it had hung out a few more months. There wasn't any of the flavor that I found objectionable in the Stilton.  So I'm pretty sure the mold isn't the problem.

[Boofer]

I wasn't impressed with the cheese while young, but loved it after it had hung out a few more months. There wasn't any of the flavor that I found objectionable in the Stilton.  So I'm pretty sure the mold isn't the problem.

That's what I'm hoping for. I didn't much care for my Stilton effort either. The Fourme d'Ambert is supposed to age out to 4 or 5 months. We'll see....

I'm also curious what dimension the Vouvray will give to the cheese. Brie confirms that it's a good thing.

-Boofer-