Milk from Holstein/Jersey cross

Started by andreark, April 23, 2015, 03:04:26 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

andreark

I have been using Jersey raw for years to make cheeses.  But the milk I have been using is getting harder to get lately.  We have another raw milk source  in the area that's a Holstein/Jersey cross.  Does anyone out there
know about the fat and protein content of this kind of cross would generally be. 

Andreark

awakephd

Hmm ... since I have no easy access to raw milk, I think the best course of action is for you to ship it all to me to test for you. Given the aging time for the resulting cheeses, it will probably take several months (during which you will need to continue regular shipments) before I will be able to give you any answers, but I am willing to sacrifice in order to do this for you. Regardless of how long it takes. Actually, it might take years. But don't worry, I will be selfless and brave ...

:)

Seriously, I am sorry that I don't have any answers for you, but I would guess any answers would only be ball-park figures at best. I would think (quite possibly wrongly -- that has been known to happen on regular occasions, according to my wife) that the cows produced by such a cross might exhibit a range of genetic variation, with some giving milk more like a Holstein, some more like a Jersey, and the rest somewhere in the middle -- ??
-- Andy

andreark

From one Andy to another,  we must be related, you are also SILLY!!!

Thanks for the attempt.

And you would love the raw Jersey I usually get, 2 to 3 inch cream cap and sweet.  I get it at
a health food store as soon as it is delivered to them.  I get it at 1:00 pm and it's from
the morning milking.  I am very upset at the thought of losing this source.

The owner of the dairy that has the Holstein/Jersey crosses says his milk is just as fat and
protein rich.....I doubt it. 

Oh, and yesterday I tried to use some milk we get in the area that is a thermalized Jersey.  I
thought it was yucky.  It had tiny pieces of 'milk parts' floating in it.  Wasn't beautiful like my
Jersey.  Just as well, I had to pitch it because it wouldn't form a curd.  Don't you laugh at
me, but I have never used anything but raw and I didn't realize that Calcium Chloride had
to be added.   Dummmm. 

Thanks for your answer,

andy also

qdog1955

Andy----you should count your blessings -----though it's sad to lose a trusted source for raw Jersey-----I'm pretty sure that any quality raw milk is better for cheese than the PH stuff that most of us are stuck with.-----and I'm pretty sure the other Andy would agree-----when you live in an area that raw milk is hard to come by or costs seven to ten dollars a gallon, I'd take a Jersey--Holstein in a flash.
Qdog

awakephd

Well, it was worth a try ... :)

I've only had the pleasure of using raw milk once, and even then I had to cut it half-and-half with P&H milk from the store ... but even so, it was a revelation to make cheese from it. So much better curds, process, everything ... sigh. And to think about getting the milk fresh from that morning's milking? You're killing me!

I wonder just how "thermalized" the Jersey milk you tried might have been. Adding CaCl is helpful for P&H milk, but I would not have expected it to make the difference between curd and no curd; instead I would just have expected a weaker curd, even more inclined to shatter. (Curds made from P&H milk shatter at least some no matter what, in my experience.)

What kind(s) of cheese have you made most from the Jersey milk?

By the way ... what a great name you have. :)
-- Andy

WovenMeadows

I used to get a local ag paper that had DHIA records from all the area farms published in it - it would include numbers like herd average pounds of milk, protein %, fat%, etc, and also what kind of cows: Holstein, Jersey, or X (crosses, and/or mixed herds).  (No other breeds anymore :( )  The H herds would generally have 2.9 to 3.1 protein, the Jerseys 3.6 to 3.8, and the crosses right in between, 3.3 to 3.4. Same thing for fat. So, averaged out, component-wise the kinds of milk do seem to fall right in between the two breeds' norms - won't be quite as rich as full Jersey, but still much richer than pure Holstein.

That said, if this Holstein/Jersey cross you have is from a very small farmer with a few cows, it might not average out to the same extent, and might be more one way or the other. Management also factors in, too, though. For instance, if the cows are lower-producing than say a standard conventional farm, their components will likely be higher (it's a inverse relation: when production goes up, component %s go down). Or, feeding more roughage and long fibers, together with ample energy, in the feed, increases butterfat % (protein %s tend to stay about the same, I think, more genetic based and less affected by management).

I think too that I'd take raw H/J cross milk over pasteurized Jersey milk, if that was what the choice came down to.

andreark

To Y'all,

Thanks so much for your input.  The owner of the Jersey/Holstein dairy (very large) said that the milk was the same
as Jersey.....  What you all said is what I would expect, that the cross would be less than Jersey but more than Holstein.
I was just told today, that my beautiful Jersey MIGHT be available again soon...It was a voluntary withdraw on the part
of the owners.  If I can't get it again, I will stop being a crybaby and live with the J/H cross....AND be happy with that.

Thanks again,

Andy

Scott Wallen

I feel blessed. I have an almost unlimited supply of raw Holstein and jersey milk.....free, and I am just learning to make cheese, I have 2 cheddar's in the cave, in another cave I have a stiltonesk, the first stiltonesk is about finished and is awesome.

andreark

You ARE blessed.  I can get wonderful raw milk but it costs about $6 per quart with a $1.25 bottle deposit.  Even making
a 2 gallon batch costs, with tax, about $60. 

Once again, thanks for your comments.

Andy

Al Lewis

I guess my local farm selling me high quality raw milk for $7.00 a gallon is a blessing!!
Making the World a Safer Place, One Cheese at a Time! My Food Blog and Videos

OzzieCheese

#10
All you who can get raw milk are truely Blessed !  Raw milk is like travelling to the Moon - you can see it - you know its there - But just getting there requires Presidential impetus - (Apollo reference) .

So I sit here and dream of a society that uses it's brains instead of giving into fear and 'Big Corporations'..

-- Mal
Usually if one person asks a question then 10 are waiting for the answer - Please ask !

andreark

Well,  I got my beautiful Jersey raw with a 3 inch cap of cream and made a cheese.....Fell asleep during the brining!!!!
Was brined about 3 times as long as necessary.  MAYBEEE it will be salty enough.  Oh well,  hope I have better luck'
next time.

andy

scasnerkay

Susan

andreark

Kay,

It has now been out of the brine and aging for about 5 days.  I'm sure it's too late to use 'anti-brine', , ,or is it?

Andy

scasnerkay

I think that is probably too late. But who knows - you could try.... Then you would have a softer rind again.  I have soaked in wine after 2 weeks of drying the rind. So maybe.
Susan