First Jarlsberg

[Marta]

This is why this hobby is so crazy and rewarding.   A number of things went wrong with this make.

It was my first 4 gallon batch, and I foolishly didn't do a dress rehearsal with my big stainless pot.  It said 16 quarts, right?  They meant exactly 16, no headroom.  So with 3 of the 4 gallons already poured in I made a dash to the hardware store for an 18 quart canner. 

Then, this was my first use of propionic, with new thermo cultures, and using the flocc method... (I may have made too many renovations at once).  Too much rennet, or too much calcium chloride, I don't know, anyway it flocced too fast. 

Then I broke my follower trying out the new press, and I was using a silly homemade hoop (plastic bucket with holes drilled in it...) the only thing I could find to use as a quick replacement follower was a 5 lb weight plate in a Ziploc, with the result that weird flaps of curd pushed up around it on the first pressing, and I sort of folded them under for the second pressing. 

Well I opened it last night... when I pushed the wire down through the middle for the first time it felt strange and stuttery, almost too easy to cut... that was because of lovely eyes all through. 

To make a longish story short: add some young homebrewed ale and a nice hearthloaf and here is our May Day bord:

[mtncheesemaker]

All's well that ends well!

[smilingcalico]

Looks good, Marta!

[Boofer]

Looks nice, Marta. Great-looking eyes.

How old did you say it was?

If I may make some suggestions:

• an 18 qt canner? It wasn't aluminum, right?
• A Jarlsberg, contrary to what recipes may say, is a cross between a Gouda and an Emmentaler. It is sometimes grouped under the heading "Goutaler". Since it has Gouda genes, it uses mesophilic culture rather than thermophilic.
• That appetizing feast you've spread out there would show better if it wasn't in its own shadow.

What kind of homebrew? It looks tasty.

-Boofer-

[Marta]

Nope; enamel.   By "canner" I didn't mean pressure canner. 

The brew is a very young rye; it's not yet fully carbonated but it has enough brightness already to not taste flat.   I kind of prefer that to heavy fizz.  I know - it's me.

As for the cheese, I am not near my notes.  I made it in February, is all I remember; I can look it up later.  We only ate a small corner... I plan to age the rest of it longer.  How long should this kind be aged?  If it's "part" Gouda that can be quite awhile, right?

[Boofer]

The caution with the enameled canners is that they not be dinged or dented which could cause the enamel to flake off. If that happened, you would likely expose your milk to steel which wouldn't help the cheese you're trying to make.

How long was your warm period for growing the eyes?

The Jarlsberg should be ready with 3 month's cold ripening. You may have made a Swiss type in the Emmentaler mode rather than a Jarlsberg. That should then be aged for 6 months. The culture type, whey dilution (or not), cooking time & temp, brining or salting, and pressing schedule all figure in to produce the cheese to a particular style.

I have attached a document that should provide you with a little more background.

-Boofer-