Pasteurized - raw comparison?

[FishFarmAndy]

Hello all,

I normally use raw milk from my neighbour's small farm, pasture fed British Friesens, although currently they are mostly eating haylage. I'm curious to do a direct comparison where I do a make as normal, then pasteurize some of the same batch and do the same make. Does anyone have any tips or suggestions of what cheese might show up some differences? I'm tempted to go for a simple recipe to give the best chance of me being consistent. So far I've had good success with Cheddar, Cheshire, various blues and, recently, Tommes. I have a Milky FJ30 which I use for cheese makes, but it's primarily designed for pasteurizing milk.

[Aris]

Imo bloomy rind cheeses expresses the flavor of the milk really well and doesn't need to be aged that long. It can be ready in 30-60 days. From experience, freshly pasteurized raw milk is pretty close to raw milk flavor wise and doesn't require calcium chloride. The pasteurized and homogenized milk I buy from the same company that I buy raw milk from smells totally different from their raw milk that I pasteurized/thermized. It is bland and has a funky smell compared to their raw milk which smells milky and buttery.

[Bantams]

I still use calcium chloride in all our pasteurized cheeses (fresh raw milk that is low-temp pasteurized right before use). Otherwise the curd is too soft and yield is decreased. Although the changes might not be noticeable if you're making cheese on a home scale. Much more obvious at commercial quantities. 

Pasteurized cheeses (especially soft young ones, like camembert) can have a more buttery flavor. Flavors will be simpler, and the flavor tends to drop off dramatically after a short time, whereas raw milk cheeses will have a flavor that keeps going and going (especially obvious in firm aged cheeses). Sometimes the pasteurization is helpful though, as it can eliminate flavor flaws in aged cheeses. 

[FishFarmAndy]

Thank-you Aris and Bantams, that's very helpful. I'll have a go at a bloomy rind cheese and an aged one, perhaps cheddar. Bantams, by low-temp do you mean 145F/30mins or another combination? And Aris, what's your pasteurization protocol?

One other thought, I may leave this experiment a short while until the cows are back on grass rather than winter feed. Not long now. At that point I'll have the choice between British Friesian and 3/4 Jersey Friesian cross (two different neighbouring farms).

[Aris]

Bantams likely uses a batch pasteurizer which is more effective than mine. The way I pasteurize probably wouldn't be considered pasteurization in the US. If I make a small batch (6 liters), I use my thick bottomed stock pot and heat the milk directly on the stove. For my big batch (10 liters), I use my thin bottomed stock pot and put it in a wider but shorter stock pot filled with less than a liter of water to act as a double boiler. I stir occasionally and once temperature reaches 145-150 F. I turn off the heat, let it sit for 30 minutes and fill the sink with water while waiting. After 30 minutes, cool the milk in the water bath with multiple frozen water bottles while stirring the milk occasionally. Nowadays I no longer pasteurize because I found out that thermization works just as well. Pretty much the same procedure but I let the heated milk sit for only 2-5 minutes and 15 minutes if I don't trust the milk. Flavor is a bit better compared to pasteurized because the milk is not that damaged.

[Bantams]

Yes, I do legal pasteurization which is 145° for 30 minutes. We only routinely pasteurize when it's required (fresh/young products) but occasionally pasteurize for aged cheeses when doing trials. 
We're Grade A, but for home use I
do it like Aris.