Jarlsberg pH question

[Sailor Con Queso]

Boof - you can't project a straight line for pH. As the bacteria start to produce more acid, they succumb to their own waste products (acid) and slow down. Every species/strain has a pH curve and a bottom end limit. For example according to Danisco, the TA50 series of S. thermo will not drop below about 5.25.

This is when it helps to have a flat electrode pH meter to measure the finished cheese as it comes out of the press. If it's too low there are many things that you can adjust for next time.

[scasnerkay]

Sailor, could you tell me what brand of pH meter you are talking about?
Also, are the pH curves and bottom end limit usually mentioned on the sites for the companies making the cultures?

[Boofer]

Boof - you can't project a straight line for pH. As the bacteria start to produce more acid, they succumb to their own waste products (acid) and slow down. Every species/strain has a pH curve and a bottom end limit. For example according to Danisco, the TA50 series of S. thermo will not drop below about 5.25.

This is when it helps to have a flat electrode pH meter to measure the finished cheese as it comes out of the press. If it's too low there are many things that you can adjust for next time.

I wasn't aware of these things. Good to know.

If the pH does happen to fall too low, measured coming off the press, what could be possible courses of correction for the next make (assuming the same cheese style/recipe)?

Reading my Danisco Alp D sheet I see that I can anticipate pH 4.5 after 7 hours. That presumes the dosage is correct for the acidity curve. That puts me in the red zone, no? The only way to be sure, that I can see, is to monitor the pH and don't go to bed while pressing is still active. Overnight pressing might work for a larger volume of cheese, but for small scale production (2-8 gallons) I would think close monitoring would be recommended.

Sailor, could you tell me what brand of pH meter you are talking about?

A lot of Extech ExStik PH100 or PH110 meters are in use on the forum. Meters with a flat surface electrode for fast and easy on-the-spot pH measurements.

-Boofer-

[Sailor Con Queso]

Reduce starter bacteria, reduce ripening time, alter cooking temp a little, stir more (eliminates excess curd whey), drain & hoop a little early, do a partial curd wash. Depends on the cheese and what you are trying to achieve. When you drain, you are removing a huge amount of lactose and are putting the brakes on acid production at that point in the make. However as LB has pointed out many times, the acidity at draining is very important so you don't want to drain too early either. Pressing removes more whey and lactose and limits acid production even more.

The fallacy of pH points is that they are absolutes at every step of the make. If you are producing cheese every day on a commercial basis, that is true to a certain degree, but it is still about defining a method and routine that works within a given environment. Milk, cheese, bacteria, molds, are all living things not a mathematical equation that can be followed without subjective evaluation.

[linuxboy]

Overnight pressing might work for a larger volume of cheese, but for small scale production (2-8 gallons) I would think close monitoring would be recommended.

Be careful. Danisco's Alp D relies on a synergistic (faster) acid production meant for a normal factory make. It's not like real alpine starter. Unless you have your dosages right and know how it behaves predictably, you have to monitor that drop to time your brine. Good part is that unlike emmethaler, an alpine type like alpkase or even gruyere will do alright even at 5.1-5.2 due to the very high drain pH. Not ideal, but with enough aging it will be OK. In a jarlsberger, with a wash, it's a decent fit because the wash helps to mitigate the drop.

[Boofer]

Okay, Sailor, that's good confirmation for what I've been following. Just checking to see if there was something I was missing.

-Boofer-