I moved to Nevada and updated my cheese making setup

[ophiuchus_99]

I recently moved to the Reno area and have set up my micro cheese factory in my garage.  I have enough room now so my equipment is stationary and everything has its own place.  I added some stainless steel shelves which makes everything much more sanitary.  I also built a new and improved draining/cheddaring vat that is working out wonderfully. 

[FooKayaks2]

Looks like an awesome space!

How are you heating the new cheddaring vat?

[ophiuchus_99]

In the first picture you can see a stainless tank to the right of the press table.  It holds around 30 gallons of water and is heated with a water heater element that is on a thermostatic controller.  I use a small food grade transfer pump that I got for making beer to circulate the water through the water jacket of the cheddaring vat.  This keeps the vat warm so the cheese doesn't cool too much while doing the cheddaring process.

[Duntov]

Looks very professional as usual.  Have a cheese on me.  Are you able to get good milk in the Reno area?

[ophiuchus_99]

I found some good Jersey milk.  It works ok but I have been struggling with the cheddar being to soft due to the higher fat content.  The flavor is fine and the yield is great, but it needs to be harder if I am going to try and age it.  I am going to try to skim some of the cream off on the next batch and see if that helps.  Jersey milk isn't the #1 choice for cheese but it is a lot better than nothing.

[reg]

Nice setup, good for you

[GortKlaatu]

I am duly impressed.  AC4U