washing with a honey based wash?

[bansidhe]

I am curious as to why washing with honey is not good but one can put candied peel in cheeses.

For example, candied lemon peel in a white Stiton is done with great success.

But when someone asked about washing with honey, they were advised against it.

Why is one ok but the other not?  Is it because a Stilton starts its life with higher acidity?  Is it because there's not enough air inside a stilton for the yeasts to run amok ?  Is it because honey itself is the problem and not the fact it is essentially sugar?

thanks

[mikekchar]

Personally, I would not put candied peels in cheese either.  Quite a lot of these sweet cheeses you see commercially are made by aging normal cheese, shredding it and then repressing it with sugary things.  I know Gavin Webber like's his fruit cheeses and it's definitely done.  However, I think it's not without risk of spoilage.  But there is also a difference between pieces of sugary things inside the paste, where there is little oxygen and painting the rind with sugar.  I'm a little bit at a loss why you would want to.  It *is* going to ferment :-)  You might as well just wash it with mead.

[bansidhe]

Yeah.. and isn't mead used as a wash?  I thought a cheese with a hint of maple would be interesting if not delicious. I ask because I want to understand the reasons so should I ever think about trying such a thing, I'll know if I should bother or not.   Of course, before I try any crazy washes  I'll make something more traditional like an Appenzeller.

[Mornduk]

My two cents… although I agree with commercial cheeses with sugary bits being hard to reproduce as they dry the cheese, then shred it to pieces add the candy bits and press it out and package for sale… I respect your curiosity to find a way. For what it’s worth, I have done an alpkäse with an amazake wash as part of my koji experiments. Amazake is quite sweet so might be a fair comparison. I added 3% salt to the wash and did the usual daily then every other day then weekly for a total of two months. Nothing bad happened. The schmier was unusually thick and tacky probably due to the high sugar/starch content, but once I stopped it dried out and nothing nasty really grew on it. At the end it was disappointing as the amazake did not add a pleasant flavor to the cheese at all, consistently with other attempts to incorporate it I’ve tried. But a sugary wash with enough salt should be viable and might add positively in a different setting. If you’re going to try an Appenzeller I’ve experimented a bit and although I won’t claim to have discovered the secret herb mix I’ve zeroed out with something that works for me, happy to share if you go into it. Looking forward to your results

[Aris]

I thought about this as well since I also make mead nowadays. In the future I will try mead and pure honey on a semi soft cheese. I already tried pure cold brewed Oolong tea on a semi soft cheese and B. linens grew quickly. In 7 days it is already covered in orange schmier and still retained some of the aroma of the tea.

[broombank]

my 'monastery cheese' steeped in Calvados was at its best when I added honey and a touch of vinegar to the wash. I felt it needed a little extra sweetness. I am now trying to repeat the experiment and just waiting for the cheese to be mature enough to treat with Calvados. Needs about another month I think.

[bansidhe]

ou guys have amazing patience.  :-).. 

@mornduk:  I'd be interested in your make and/or wash for your appenzeller...  I have small equipment.. I think the largest make I could do would be about 3 1/2 gallons.  My four gallon pot does NOT hold four gallons!  :-(

[Mornduk]

Sure. I have one that is over 300 days but had a larger than usual yield, which means I shouldn't age it too much. I can open it take some pictures and post the make with steps etc.

[bansidhe]

Suh-Weet!   Thanks!

[Mornduk]

Thank you for forcing me to post it

Honestly this is one I do ok, not "better than store bought" so I would probably not have done it otherwise

[bansidhe]

I just saw your recipe w/pH markers.  Thank you very much for posting!