Midnight Moon Goat's Milk Gouda Style Cheese

[Cartierusm]

Anyone ever had Midnight Moon? It's goat milk and you can get it at Mollie Stones. Best cheese I've ever had. Just wondering how it's made.

[Tea]

What does it look like?  Is it a round cheese with a white mould?  Just thinking moon, round and white.  Just wondering whether it might be a nic name for a St Maure, which is a goat cheese, made in a similar fashion to a brie/camembert.

[Cheese Head]

There's some info here and more here.

[Tea]

Thanks CH that's looks tempting to try.  Although was doing a bit a speed reading and thought it said the it had a flavour similar to salted camel ??  Had to read that bit again.  Salted caramel sounded much better. 

[wharris]

Salted Camel.    Hmm


I read that to my 17 year old son.  He is still laughing.  He won't tell me why.

[Tea]

Maybe because that's what he thinks it does taste like??

[NimbinValley]

I know this thread is old but thought I would add my bit... we can get midnight moon here in Australia too.  My understanding is that it is an aged Gouda style cheese.  It is actually made in Holland and imported into the US, (then exported here I guess).  I have know idea of the cultures used but the flavour profile suggests lots of adjunct cultures.

[linuxboy]

It's not double imported with a hop to US first. It's shipped directly. And the culture blend is mostly classic DL gouda culture with multiple undefined strains. That's why you get the flavor intensity, same as you do in a cow gouda. There are a few similar cheeses out there with very close flavor profiles.

[Iezzo]

Necro posting.

I came across this cheese at my cheese and wine specialty shop Hops and Grapes and found it pleasant.  One of, if not my favorite cheese is Manchego, and this is remarkably similar.  I found this particular brand to have a slightly creamier texture/flavor, slightly nutty, with that distinct goat undercurrent (I hate to relate it to wet dog but lets call it what it is).  Hard to say if it's the process or the milk (sheep vs goat) or more likely both that allows to distinguish between the two.

http://www.cypressgrovechevre.com/cheeses/creamline/midnight-moon.html   



If nothing else, it's slightly cheaper than the Manchego that I purchase at the same shop.

[NimbinValley]

It's not double imported with a hop to US first. It's shipped directly. And the culture blend is mostly classic DL gouda culture with multiple undefined strains. That's why you get the flavor intensity, same as you do in a cow gouda. There are a few similar cheeses out there with very close flavor profiles.

Hi Linux boy.  I have been persevering with my washed curd gouda style cheese made from goats milk, aka 'midnight moon' but I am disappointed in the results.  Texture is fine but the flavour is just not there.  It's got a slight coconuty flavour but that is all really. I am using MA4001, PLA, KL, TA61 for de-bittering and some LBC81 to hasten ripening.  I set at 31oC. Cut at 3x flocculation, replace about 30% of whey with water and cook to 38 over half an hour.  Whey off at pH 6.35ish and hoop.  At 3 months it tastes good but nothing like the intensity of a midnight moon...

Any suggestions?

Thanks.

Paul.

[linuxboy]

One, age it out for a year. Two, change your cultures. As I wrote, midnight moon is a DL culture with multiple undefined strains, and adjuncted with what tastes like helveticus, paracasei, rhamnosus, or a blend to me. MA4001 is a D type with specified strains, modified with TA for acidification. Wrong culture. Get a classic gouda culture where you have all four (again, DL type) and make sure it's undefined strains. Hansen's CHN 11 IIRC, FD, probat, etc can all be used. And then adjunct it with bacilli. Strain selection is absolutely crucial here. You can't use something like LH100. You have to use a strain specifically formulated to give you the flavor profile you want. All the houses have these strains. Ask your local shop what they recommend for a sweet and nutty profile. Something like Danisco's FLAV series tend to work. LBC81 is fine for faster paste development and bitterness control and some flavor development, but it is not like helveticus or specific acidophilus flavors. One of danico's proprietary FLAVs, for example, their acidilacti, produces a sweet note.

I would spend a bit of money, get 4-6, make small wheels, and figure out which ones work for you. It's difficult to predict exactly what the milk interaction will be, so go through a round of trials and see what you like.

[NimbinValley]

Thanks very much.

FD = Flora Danica?

Back to my cheese text books to pull all of what you said together - there are hours of digesting there! 

Thanks for being generous with you knowledge.

I'll keep you posted on how I go.

Paul.

[linuxboy]

No huge need to understand everything. Change it up to a multi-species undefined culture, and get 4-6 of the various bacilli adjuncts, like you find in the FLAV series, and experiment until you find something that works. No recipe changes to temp or process.

[NimbinValley]

Thanks.

Just made a batch.  Flora Danica, Flav54 (thats what I had on hand) plus some LBC81 and TA61.

I'll taste the first ones in 3 months and let you know how I went.

Paul.

[NimbinValley]

... by the whey...

I was going to brine them, air dry for 24hrs, mature at 12oC, rub with macadamia oil every second day for 3 weeks, then vacuum seal and mature at 4oC for 12 months. (if I can wait that long!)

Maca oil is plentiful and cheap here and has the same stability as olive oil

Thanks.