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CHEESE TYPE BOARDS (for Cheese Lovers and Cheese Makers) => ADJUNCT - Lactic Surface White Mold (Penicillium candidum) Ripened => Topic started by: peri7132 on September 14, 2010, 01:04:17 AM
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on my first attempt at making crottins i noticed that the mold isn't perfectly white there are some light tanish spots on some? is that ok? I used geo 15 andpc neige and ma11 it has been 5 days since they have been put in the cheese container in the fridge. that is probably the least of my worries since there isn't a whole lot of white mold on them anyway. I was worried about the slipping but one must hav emold to even worry about that.
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Hi Peri, are you wiping away any moisture that is building up in your cheese box and flipping your cheeses? Did these crottin sit out at all to get their bloom before you put them in the fridge or did they go straight into the fridge for draining? I would put a dab of vinegar and a sprinkle of kosher salt on any odd colored mold you might be getting, and keep the box nice and dry. I have found that crottin grow nice white mold in a week or so and then they can really take off with the aging process. They can go from just right to over ripe fairly quickly.
Bonnie
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They sat out in the molds for 2 days and then another 2. Days when I salted them. They had a little white bloom on them when I put them in the fridge. But it has been slow going and then I noticed the tan spots on some.small the size of an eraser head on a pencil. Not all have these spots. My cheese seems really dry. I added a little moisture yesterday but I just got home and checked them after reading your post and wiped the moisture out, they are still dry. They do have some bloom on the sides but none on the top or bottom. Thank you for replying I will also try the salt and vinegar.
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Posting a photo may help with a diagnoses.
Christine
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I will try to take better pictures
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what I noticed when I went to take better pictures is that most of those brown spots are disappearing on their own, the mold is growing slow is that because it is too cool in my fridge 43 degrees is the warmest i can get it, until I can find another fridge for just cheese. they are still dry with a little moisture here and there that I can feel when I turn.
see the little brown spot on the back row second cheese from the left.
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I am excited about the cheeses and a nervous wreck, it is like waiting for my does to kid, not knowing what you will get ad how the birth will be! thanks for the input.
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That's just geo - that's what it looks like. Cold temp means candidum sporulation is slow and ripening will be slow. 43 is a touch cold, but not terrible.
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It looks like they are coming along nicely. Since they are aging slowly - that is a good thing. I have had problems with them all ripening too fast and then getting too strong to eat. It is better to be able to control that aging process slowly. They will feel dry for a bit, but then they should start to soften up around the edges. You might want to try to eat one that is fairly young with a nice bloom to see if you prefer that stage or if you want it to ripen more.
Bonnie
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Mold is slowly growing on my crottins mainly on the sides,the ttops and bottoms are still pretty much mold free.is that because my temp is a little on tghe cold side
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They look great to me.
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I would guess you dry-salted them, which can make patches of high salinity that it takes the mold a while to populate. They look good though and if the white is taking over all the better. Usually once the yeast gets going and you have thos epatches it's very hard for the white stuff to take hold.
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I am excited about my crottins. I did dry salt them and today they are two weeks old and I cut one open this morning and it ooks good texture was close to mperfect for me BUT the after taste was salty but still good and no chemical or ammonia taste. They are still young but I am mvery excited that in this early stage I didn't get slip skin. I was going to make a batch of chevre today when I got done milking but I think I will try another batch of crottin and maybe brine half of them. I saw a post by white sage farms and she showed brining them and they didn't seem to get soft. I will have to research a little more to make sure I understand what ratio of salt to water to soak the crottins in. here are todays pictures. Thanks to everyone that responded except for this forum I don't have anyone to really talk to about making cheese or about cheese at all. They like to eat it but not discuss it.
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Congratulations on your success!
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Those look delicious! I decided to brine mine after reading Francois' post about brining them. It seems to have worked well.
I googled your farm name after I noticed it in your signature, hoping to see some goat and farm photos...I saw your etsy store with the pretty things that you make. The wooden horse with the flashy colored mane and tail is so pretty! I love the cup with what look like birch trees. I was wondering if you could make some containers for the type of cheese that ages in the little ceramic pots... maybe even some tops to go over them with lots of little holes for air circulation/evaporation ... I'll buy some ;)
I am excited about my crottins. I did dry salt them and today they are two weeks old and I cut one open this morning and it ooks good texture was close to mperfect for me BUT the after taste was salty but still good and no chemical or ammonia taste. They are still young but I am mvery excited that in this early stage I didn't get slip skin. I was going to make a batch of chevre today when I got done milking but I think I will try another batch of crottin and maybe brine half of them. I saw a post by white sage farms and she showed brining them and they didn't seem to get soft. I will have to research a little more to make sure I understand what ratio of salt to water to soak the crottins in. here are todays pictures. Thanks to everyone that responded except for this forum I don't have anyone to really talk to about making cheese or about cheese at all. They like to eat it but not discuss it.
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Thanks for your comments, my second and third batches of crottins are turning out different they seem moister but I was so worried about slip skin on the first ones and after reading feed back on slip skin it is when they lose moisture that slip skin occurs right? These just don't feel right. Good news I just turned the new batch and they have more mold and feel not so slippery. I am enetering these in the ADGA convention cheese competiton in Colorado and shipping them next week. Hope these are as good as my first ones which were as good as any I have bought I feel.I haven't launched my web site yet, I have been working on it and i am close. The pottery studio I worked out moved so i ahven't been able to throw and work for the past year since i don't have my own wheel or kiln. but that is an interesting idea and if I ever find another owrkshop i will try making some.
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it is when they lose moisture that slip skin occurs right?
Most of the time, it is because too much Geo or the wrong kind of Geo is used. Also, if the surface has not dried enough by the time the Geo starts to bloom, the skin will slip. Or of the temp is too high during early ripening and the geo is too fast.
My crottins go back in forth in style between using PC and not, depending what I feel like. Regardless, I always brine and put a fan on them to dry up after they're out of the brine. I don't like dry salting so much, it's too easy to get uneven spots.
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enetering these in the ADGA convention cheese competiton in Colorado and shipping them next week.
In Colorado? Do you have more details on dates and location?
Thanks
Chris
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is it late to dry them with a fan? if one dries them after the white mold starts appearing will they get slip skin. the one batch is on day 4 and were salted yesterday morning 24 hours ago. they have some white mold and feel wetter than I remember the other ones. also exactly how do i make a brine solution for crottins water to salt percentage and how long do i brine them? I read some on brining but don't fully grasp the whole picture yet . any help would be appreciated. funny when I look at the pictures it looks like there is some GC growth. I have posted pictures. also the cheese competition at the ADGA Conv is Oct 20/21 in Tuscan AZ thought it was CO. at the holiday Inn and suites tuscan airport North. It runs from the 15-23. you can check out more at www.adga.org (http://www.adga.org)
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is it late to dry them with a fan?
No, but getting there
if one dries them after the white mold starts appearing will they get slip skin.
Hard to tell. Usually, it's still somewhat salvageable, especially if you keep the temp cool and humidity on the lower end. For crottins, I start my humidity at 90% for the first 3 days, then move up to 95% for 3 days, then 98% for 6-10 days or until the mold has bloomed, then I take humidity back down for longer aging, or eat right away. One of my favorite guilty pleasures is cutting a crottin in half and getting a glass of white wine and stuffing the half in my mouth and chewing happily. The higher humidity helps the mold bloom, and the lower humidity at first helps to prevent slip skin. But this is not mandatory, just my approach.
the one batch is on day 4 and were salted yesterday morning 24 hours ago. they have some white mold and feel wetter than I remember the other ones. also exactly how do i make a brine solution for crottins water to salt percentage and how long do i brine them?
See my brine table for the amounts. I use a 20-22% brine, 12-15 minutes per side. http://www.wacheese.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=65 (http://www.wacheese.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=65)
I read some on brining but don't fully grasp the whole picture yet .
You make up a brine and adjust the acidity and calcium to match the cheese (add a few tablespoons vinegar and CaCl2 per gallon of brine). I don't like dry salting fresh cheese because personally I'm no good at it. I can never get all the salt even and often have these uneven patches of mold growth. I do OK on dry salting blues and hard cheeses. That's why I brine crottins, camemberts, etc. But if you are good at dry salting, please do that. With brining, there's a higher chance of slip skin because the cheeses come out wet.
any help would be appreciated. funny when I look at the pictures it looks like there is some GC growth. I have posted pictures. also the cheese competition at the ADGA Conv is Oct 20/21 in Tuscan AZ thought it was CO. at the holiday Inn and suites tuscan airport North. It runs from the 15-23. you can check out more at [url=http://www.adga.org]www.adga.org[/url] ([url]http://www.adga.org[/url])
Hey, that's great that you're entering. I can't go this year, but I know a bunch of people are going, including some commercial cheesemakers from the NW. I know Rhonda Gothberg (Gotherg Farms) and Gianaclis Caldwell (Pholia) are going. I'm sure you'll have a great time :)
Those look a little wet to me; I would put a fan on them and dry them out a little.
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thanks for the help i jsut checked them they were in the fridge since this morning when I wrote this they feel a tad but drier maybe because they are firmer and colder but i have put the fan on them for an hour and see how that goes.
I won't be able to go between work and the cost it isn't attainable this year, but next years the nationals are supposed to be in PA and they have a cheese competition and I don't know where the convention is yet but looking forward to competing some more and will have more cheesemaking under my belt by then. I am sending my cheese, 2 flavored chevres a sweet and a savory and hopefully a a mold ripened aged cheese, aka : crottin. looking forward to see what they say about them. Have you entered and if so what has your experience been?
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Oh, I see; I thought you were going. Hope you win something :)
I don't like to compete; I do more than enough of that in the real world. Cheesemaking to me is about everyone working hard, loving on animals, feeding people, and sharing adventures and life together. Nothing wrong with competition, just not really my thing.
I think your crottins should be fine, the fan is just a precaution. With dry salting and a short maturation period, they're usually okay.
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I have the goats and I love them and they fill my world. To be honest I am not sure why I decided to enter the cheese competition. Partly I wanted to connect with people like me that love making cheese and I would get hopefully honest feed back. I haven't connected with local people who are pasionate about making cheese and want to talk about it. This forum has opened up a new world for me. Thanks for all your input. I look foprward to brining my next batch with out the forum I might never have tried brining, hopefully I will get enough milk since I am down to one goat and one quart a day.