My New Washed Rind - Red Hound

OzzieCheese · April 13, 2021, 11:53:22 PM

These are the items I use - I'm sure there are pretty available pretty well globally.

https://www.spotlightstores.com/kitchen-and-dining/kitchen-storage/containers/d%C3%A9cor-microsafe-5-piece-oblong-container-set/BP80527119

OzzieCheese · April 14, 2021, 04:24:27 AM

And .... Day 4. Something is happening already.

The yeasty slightly slippery feeling is starting on all of the cheeses and we have first bloom of Geotrichum C. According to G. Caldwell, this particular mold has yeast like characteristics and will spread like a fine matt instead of the bloomy white as seen on Malemberts (my Camembert).

Second wash today. The smell is still sweet.

paulabob · April 15, 2021, 12:07:02 AM

I truly appreciate all the instructions and recipe. And dog pic. :D

I made tallegio once, thought it was a disaster since blue got ahold. But I washed the blue pretty vigorously off, put it in the fridge, forgot about it for awhile. And it still tasted absolutely amazing. I'll have to try your recipe next time!

mikekchar · April 15, 2021, 12:13:44 AM

Looks great! BTW, geotrichum is technically a yeast as of a few years ago. I read a paper in Nature about it. It's been flipping back and forth between mold and yeast for a long time, but they have apparently "officially" decided it's a yeast.

What I didn't understand, but which is fascinating, is that a yeast is a more evolved form of mold (is it like Pokemon, I wonder...) Yeasts are a bit weird in that they express *less* genes than molds. As a mold evolves into a yeast, it turns off the expression of genes that give it the mold like behaviour. Geotrichum is basically somewhere in between a mold and a yeast, so it still expresses some of the characteristics of the mold. Different varieties have slightly different behaviour. But apparently, it's gone far enough that they call it a yeast.

Not that it's really that important, but I though it was interesting :-) I wish I had a link to the paper... I'm terrible about that kind of thing...

OzzieCheese · April 15, 2021, 12:42:07 AM

Thanks for mold V Yeast dissertation. Is all very interesting. G Caldwell's book I find has probably the most up to date mold and culture info - alas, I can't get alot of the really interesting molds like Murcor, so I'm having to substitute along the way. Nearly washing time and if there are any changes I'll add something further. Yeah, Bailie is a wonderful companion.

Boofer · April 15, 2021, 04:35:51 AM

Quote from: OzzieCheese link= :Ptopic=19381.msg147671#msg147671 date=1618106125
The crud by the end of the cooking phase should be nice and shiny and rounded.

I don't visit here as often as I used to, but this visit was especially nice.

Welcome back, Mal! And what a welcome sight to see your photo essay with descriptive captions! Surprising that you say this is only your 3rd washed rind effort. Love your detail.

I think this may be the first time that a pet has been characterized with cheese descriptors. ;) Bailie is a sweetheart, and yes, I do see the linens shading. Very apt.

My intent is to return to the washed rind arena this year. I've been hankering for something along the lines of an Esrom. Pink & stinky. :P

Kudos, Mal, have a cheese!

-Boofer-

OzzieCheese · April 15, 2021, 04:58:44 AM

Hi boofer glad to see you are here. Maybe a few more like this and we'll see an improvement in the posting quality. How very dyslexic of me crud should be curd :P I've only just te joined thr turophile ranks. Plan to do more this year. I have to do something in retirement.

bansidhe · April 15, 2021, 12:03:50 PM

This is very exciting, to see the process and progress of your cheeses. Thank You for the descriptions. It helps be think about what I should be observing when I make cheese.

OzzieCheese · April 16, 2021, 11:45:10 PM

Yesterday was wash day and time to wash the linens - sorry for the pun. I actually was reviewing my collection of fungus, molds and spores making sure I didn't cross the streams and noticed that some of them were very old (like Zuul) in particular my B.Linens was dated best before 2015 and so was the GC. CUltures has last several years stored in the freezer and my Flora Danica and Penicillium Candidum stocks are still going strong after 5 years. I've been making Malemberts successfully off those throughout the pandemic so I wasn't going to go nuts and by

But I thought that a new cheese deserved a refresh. I'm lucky to have an excellent supplier just up the road https://www.greenlivingaustralia.com.au and before I washed today a new GC and B.Linens supply was procured at a new 'Furphy' ale wash with an additional dosing of both.

Cheese report:
This is a little weird as each cheese - in it's separate ripening container - is different. One is still sweet smelling like a new Camembert, another just a little more sour. The ones with the first bloom of GC are nice and slick with one smelling like it's ready for the B.Linens to show up. I'm rotating the cheese in the fridge and maybe there is a temperature difference that I haven't measured.

Time to turn the cheeses and see how they are going.

OzzieCheese · April 17, 2021, 02:02:42 AM

Time to be a little more scientific. I have numbered the cheeses from 1 to 4 and I'll record the characteristics as such.

#1 Feel - Very nicely slick feel not wet.
Smell - nice mushroomy smell developing.
Appearance - both side and edges are showing a nice fine peach fuzz covering
This cheese is almost ready for the colder fridge. I'm going the run the normal fridge at 5-7 DegC for the first couple of washes and monitor the appearance of the Linens - if it arrives.

#2 Feel - Same as #1
Smell - same as #1 but with a little more 'Ale' in the mix.
Appearance - not as uniform covering as #1
I think this cheese will be a couple of days behind #1 going into the colder fridge.

#3 Feel - same as #1
Smell - Less mushroom smell than #1 and #2 but is starting to.
Appearance - Less G.C evident than #1 or #2 though, there are little tuffs popping up on one side.
This one might have been in the colder part of the fridge more that the first two

#4 Feel - is not as slick as the others
Smell - This one is the sweeter smelling one but not as much as yesterday.
Appearance - small tuffs appearing but behind the the others.
This might have been the longest in the colder part of the fridge. Seeing at I have a four shelf fridge I have started a formal rotational pattern

start by taking out the cheeses out starting at the bottom and stack in order. Do the required affinage activities and fill the fridge starting at position 2. As you go through the cycles every day the cheese will cycle though every shelf every four days and then hopefully get the same amount of temperature exposure.

See youse all tomorrow...

Boofer · April 18, 2021, 01:10:54 AM

Entertaining little buggers. Looks like you've found something to delight yourself in your retirement. Good on ya'!

-Boofer-

OzzieCheese · April 18, 2021, 03:45:39 AM

@Boofer - Thanks Mate - I can't use the time poor excuse any more so might as well make it as complete a record as possible. What a difference a day makes #4 didn't want to be left behind and has put on a nice display of GC and there is no 'sweetness in the smell of any of them today.

Here is the todays report card.

#1 Feel - drying off still slick to touch. So, I'm going to presume the RH in the containers is good.
Smell - Just an under tone of foot odor - just no other way to say it.
Appearance - a nice GC covering.
Depending on the GC coverage it will be graduating to the colder fridge at the next wash.

#2 Feel---------- Dryish but not as much as #1
Smell-------- same as #1 but no feety smell as yet
Appearance - More tufts, more uniform covering.
I think this cheese will be a couple of days behind #1 going into the colder fridge.

#3 Feel - More slick than two #2 - this is not a wet feel but slimy but without being sticky - if that makes sense?
Smell - progressed to be like #2.
Appearance - Less G.C evident than #1 or #2 but, there are a lot more tuffs popping up all over.

#4 Feel ---------- Slickness improving
Smell--------- This was the sweeter smelling one but this has disappeared today and is more mushroomy.
Appearance - A lot more GC colonies appearing today

and all cheeses rotated in the fridge.

and we'll have a class photo before we graduate them to the colder fridge.

OzzieCheese · April 19, 2021, 02:13:15 AM

Today was just a cleaning of the container and flipping the cheese

#1 Feel - Dry all over today. added a paper towel moistened by a little of the wash.
Smell - Oh here comes that slightly off seafood smell (well it is to me) that I remember with the other Wash Rind cheeses I did.
Appearance - a nice matt coating of GC all over.

No B.Linens colour as yet but the seafoody smell is a dead giveaway that it is on the way.

#2 Feel---------- Same as #1
Smell-------- some feety smell but not the same as #1
Appearance - Same as #1

Still on track to be a couple of days behind #1 going into the colder fridge.

#3 Feel - Dry on top and slick on the bottom - They seem to be drying out as well.
Smell - progressed to be like #2.
Appearance - more uniform GC covering today.

#4 Feel ---------- Sticky on top and bottom
Smell--------- same as #3 in the 'feety smell' department.
Appearance - more uniform GC covering today

There is no B.Linens colour appearing as yet and they seem to be drying out a bit much. Might have to see about a light brine wash every other day and leaving the collected moisture in the containers. I feel they are progressing well. Need a light Brine with a little B.Linens added to see if I can keep the moisture level up and encourage the Linens along. Tomorrow is wash day.

For those still reading this - does this seem a little slow or about right?

Mal D

@Boofer - would you cheese wrap these at this stage or wait for the B.L to show up?

Mal

bansidhe · April 19, 2021, 06:39:36 PM

Excuse me if I missed this in your descriptions... But how are Cheese 1,2,3&4 different? Or are they the same but just are aging differently? I ask because I had a batch of four cheeses and three were stink=y early on while the fourth still isn't as smelly weeks later. I was wondering why these cheeses, all treated the same way have different character

OzzieCheese · April 20, 2021, 06:54:01 AM

These cheese are from the same batch, in the same type of container, in the same fridge. I'm working on the theory that there is a difference in the temperature in the fridge. And is one of the reasons I setup the regimented rotation. I've noticed that when I do my Camembert where they mature at different rates but, I wasn't too concerned as that meant that I could enjoy them over an extended period. May be your differing maturing rate might be caused by the same thing. I don't have must room so I use a series of wine fridges and a cold Bar fridge for the final stage. But that is only for these short maturing cheeses. I have a totally separate wine fridge for my long term projects.