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CHEESE TYPE BOARDS (for Cheese Lovers and Cheese Makers) => ADJUNCT - Rennet Surface White Mold (Penicillium candidum) Ripened => Topic started by: MooMaid on March 15, 2009, 07:15:50 AM

Title: MooMaid's Camembert #1
Post by: MooMaid on March 15, 2009, 07:15:50 AM
I've made my very first camembert. I wish I could take better pictures. I'm using my daughters camera and I can't tell how to turn off the flash or read any of the tiny symbols. Anyhoooo.. I wondering if it is time to wrap these in the special paper which I got. Also should the fuzzy mold cover the 'whole' cheese. It looks rindy but the mold is patchy. It's been about 12 days now. Any suggestions??
Title: Re: MooMaid's Camembert #1
Post by: Tea on March 15, 2009, 08:41:01 PM
Hi Moo Maid and congrats on making this cheese.  It is not one of the easiest at all.
Just wondering if you have been aging this in the fridge at a colder temp than recommended, as the white bloom usually takes around 5-8 days to completely cover the cheese.
If these are 12 days old, then I think that I would cover then and continue aging.  If you are going to age them in the fridge, then they will take 2-4 weeks longer to ripen, but they seem to fair much better at the colder temp, then a warmer temp.
They are looking good at this stage, so hopefully they will age gracefully for you.
Keep us informed of their progress.
Title: Re: MooMaid's Camembert #1
Post by: MooMaid on March 16, 2009, 04:40:24 AM
Oh Thank you-camembert is my favorite cheese. I am aging in the regular fridge until I conquer my chest freezer issue which I'm working on. (shhhh... I've got a saw that I'm going to use...more later on that- :-X ) The temp is low about 49deg.to 52deg.  What I do is I have the cheese in a box with a platform and a cover. This is in the bottom crisper with water in the bottom, about 2inches. The cover on the box is about 1/3 open.  Every two days I change the water in the bin, and I use really warm water to replentish. It warms up to about the 52degree mark, for about a 12-15hrs-then gradually decreases. to 49degrees. Somehow it never has fallen below that.  I have a hygrometer as well as a thermometer and the humidity has always been over 90% with the highest being 95%. So what is the temp it should be?  I've also lowered the refridge temp but can't lower it too much cause it will cause everything else to get warm and spoil. I'm getting ready to make another batch of camembert and I plan on insulating that bottom bin so that it will hold the warmer temp longer. Also I noticed that the first few days, I had thick paper toweling in the bottom of my cheese box to absorb draining whey. I wonder if that was helping to keep the temp warm in the box. Maybe I should put a towel when I next change the water. Which should be tonight but I'm a weeee bit tired. So I guess it will have to be tomorrow. BTW-should I mist the cheese with a tiny bit more culture?? Thanks for your feedback, wish I could send some for taste testing!  ;D
Title: Re: MooMaid's Camembert #1
Post by: Cheese Head on March 16, 2009, 11:15:43 AM
Hi Moo Maid, they look great!

As Tea says, I would defiantly wrap them, pictures of the white mold wraps I bought here (http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,1073.0.html), pictures of my first (not good) wrapping here (http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,1074.0.html). I've since wrapped in a continuous circumferential pattern like this one (http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,1104.0.html) and gotten a better "fit".

Wow, very high maintenance on your "cheese cave", great work, once you have them wrapped, you shouldn't have to worry about humidity anymore. On temp, as Tea says you could age at cooler temp for longer, this should help your other food to stop wilting,

For you next batch, an easier way to get a high humidity, cool environment before wrapping may be using a picnic cooler, info here (http://cheeseforum.org/Making/Cheese_Caves.htm).

PS: Hope you don't mind but I've renamed your title to this thread so more useful to other readers, let me know if you want something different :).
Title: Re: MooMaid's Camembert #1
Post by: wharris on March 16, 2009, 11:18:14 AM
This looks really good.  In encourages me to give these a try.
Title: Re: MooMaid's Camembert #1
Post by: MooMaid on March 17, 2009, 06:49:04 AM
Hi, everyone I wrapped my cheeses today(?) It was very exciting. but I notice a mild ammonia smell. I did a forum search and I'm not clear on whether the smell is normal at this point in time. :-\  The outside is firm and vaguely wrinkly and a deep yellow. Do I need to spritz with the Penicillian/Geotrichum culture?? How long should it be wrapped before I give it a try. My 19yr old daughter is hot on my case for this cheese. ;D thanks for your help :D
Title: Re: MooMaid's Camembert #1
Post by: Cartierusm on March 17, 2009, 07:52:03 AM
They do look good. Little bundles of mold.
Title: Re: MooMaid's Camembert #1
Post by: Cheese Head on March 17, 2009, 12:14:25 PM
MooMaid, ideally the cheeses should be smooth, white, with mold covering all the cheese, not yellow or patchy or wrinkled, that said they should be wrapped, which you have done. Hope they aren't wrinkly like this batch of mine (http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,1106.0.html)!

No need to spritz as they already have the mold as shown by the white bloom.

As you have 4 Camemberts and for learning, I'd recommend you open, take pictures, and eat them ~5-10 days apart. As Tea says, when to start opening them is a function of your aging temperature, colder means longer aging. As Tea said, open first at ~2 weeks?