Today I made my first Gouda in a trial and error approach to getting more familiar with cheesemaking (in other words, actually getting a cheese to turn into something I'm happy with). I plan to keep making a Gouda every couple of weeks until I get one that goes right and turns out right. Today's was the first time I've used a pH meter. Here's my make (that's, at least, my understand of how the vernacular is used...):
2 gallons p/h whole milk
0900 add 1/4 tsp Mesophilic-A 88 F, pH 6.64
0935 add 1/4 tsp CaCl diluted in 1/4 cup water, stirred in thoroughly
add 1 tsp rennet 90 F, pH 6.57
0941 early floc check surprise--it's already solidifying
use 6min x 3 = 18 mins
0953 no clean break
0956 cut curd into 3/8" cubes (well, I tried, anyway)
0959 let heal for 3 mins
1001 stir 15 min 89 F, pH 6.55
1016 let curds settle 88 F, pH 6.54
1026 remove 1/3 whey, replace with hot water to 95 F, stir
1031 add more hot water to 101 F, stir
1043 reached minimum pH of 6.45
1045 drain, begin pressing under whey
1115 remove whey, flip, redress press at ~25 lbs/4" mold curds: 80 F, pH 6.25
1220 flip, redress, press ~50 lbs curds: 73 F, pH 5.75
1330 check pH 5.55
I'm concerned that the pH is dropping too fast and I need to go run errands, so I put the press in the cheese cave
1545 pH below recommended (by Dixon) removal point--pH 5.23 (compared to 5.40 - 5.50) temp 64.8 F
remove from mold, place in brine
And now it's in the cheese room, chillin' in the brine. My questions for those who might be able to help:
1. Why was the flocculation time so much shorter than I expected it to be (10+ minutes)?
2. When I cut the curd into 3/8" cubes, they looked good, then, as I stirred them, half of them seemed to break up so that I had 2 groups, 1 that was the right size and another with significantly smaller (1/4 as large) curds. What happened?
3. The final cooking (which I started at 1031 was supposed to last about 30 minutes, but I was at the pH target in 12 minutes. Any guesses why that was? And will that have adverse effects on the cheese (because I might not have gotten enough moisture out)?
4. Similarly, the pH dropped significantly faster during pressing than I anticipated it would. Does the (apparently) precipitous drop in pH indicate that it will continue to drop rapidly, producing a sour, crumbly cheese? Also, does missing the target to get the cheese out of the mold and into the brine (pH 5.23 instead of between 5.4 and 5.5) have serious implications for the final, aged product?
My guesses for the answer to most of these questions is that I used too much starter or I had temperature/time that was too favorable to growth early on leading to too large of a culture population. Any other thoughts or answers to these questions.
Thanks for reading!
Mike