Waxing vs Vacuum - effect on aging?

[Boofer]

What I'd like to know is how that cream works, what it's made of, whether it has mold-inhibiting additives (e.g., Natamycin), and where I can get it.  So long as its not something I'd want to put in my mouth, I might be interested in trying it.

You might check member Hoeklijn for more details on how it's used. He uses it.

I've attached one source of the coating.

-Boofer-

[Sailor Con Queso]

Some have Natamycin (mold inhibitor) and some don't, so you have to ask the supplier. I hate the cream because it digs in and makes the rind inedible.

[Caseus]

That was the first time I'd really explored that cheesemaker site, Boofer.  They carry a fascinating array of tempting goodies.   8)

$75 for 5 pounds of cream wax seems expensive unless a little goes a long way, in which case it might be a lifetime supply.  I rather suspect that is the case.  There's no indication there of shelf life or keeping qualities, so that is something I'd consider.  But I did find a smaller (albeit more expensiver per pound) 500 gram jar of it here, and it appears that it comes from Glengarry.  Anyway, not hard to find.

Making the rind inedible is a big consideration for me because I am making only small cheeses right now (2 gallon batches).  The smaller the cheese, the greater the loss due to inedible rind.

[knipknup]

I vac packed my couple of cheeses this past weekend after fighting with humidity and giving up.  The highest I was able to get anything was 70%.  My cave is a little dorm fridge.  Now I'm fighting with temp.  I am trying to avoid buying a temp controller, but the warmest I've gotten it is 45F.  Is that too cold?  It really isn't big enough to age cheese for years unless I stop making now.  I would prefer to age 3-6 months on 'regularly made' items.

[Boofer]

I vac packed my couple of cheeses this past weekend after fighting with humidity and giving up.  The highest I was able to get anything was 70%.  My cave is a little dorm fridge.  Now I'm fighting with temp.  I am trying to avoid buying a temp controller, but the warmest I've gotten it is 45F.  Is that too cold?  It really isn't big enough to age cheese for years unless I stop making now.  I would prefer to age 3-6 months on 'regularly made' items.

I have two 4.5 cu ft "dorm" fridges as caves. They each have a temp controller that keeps the temp around 52F. The ambient humidity inside is around 80%, but my new cheeses are in their own little minicaves which keeps them comfy at RH around 98%. Right now that's important for the blues I have in there.

You can get by without a temp controller for now, but the cheeses will take longer to ripen. There are a lot of choices for cheeses that ripen in 3-6 months. I opened my Leiden recently after only 9 weeks. There are blues, lactics, Camembert, Reblochon, and others that ripen fairly quickly. Very rarely do I see a cheese that has to go for 12 months and pretty much never for years. That third pic shows some possible candidates for long-term affinage on the shelf below the minicave (Fourme d'Ambert #1, little guy): Cheddar #1, Cheddar #2, and Double Gloucester #1. Humidity isn't an issue for them because they're enclosed in vacuum bags.

-Boofer-

[MrsKK]

I also use a mini fridge as my cave.  Many of the cheeses I make start out in a ripening container - lidded plastic box with a rack in the bottom to keep the cheese wheel out of any moisture.  I really like the natural rind that forms in the ripening box.  When they come out of that, I usually give them about a week to dry up a bit more, then coat them with lard or butter.  It is a bit messy, but tends to dry out eventually.  Once that happens at around the 2-3 month mark, I'm more comfortable with vacuum sealing the cheese.

My mini fridge is rapidly filling up now that the cow is back in milk.  I've got a Colby and a Tomme that are ready to be vac sealed, plus a half-wheel of Gouda that's already been vacuum packed - when I make more cheese that needs to be aged, the oldest will go into the warmest part of the regular fridge.   Not ideal, but it works for the time being.

[knipknup]

My mini-fridge is probably only 1 sqft.  It was only $20 and I got what I paid for.  I had a big 'ol fridge for lagering beers and it raised my energy bills, so I went little this time.  I may upgrade in a while, but not now.

Humidity is my biggest issue.  I can't seem to get the humidity higher than 70%.  I am encouraged by the posts that state higher with more cheese (even with all vac sealed) in the fridge, which is probably a function of the volume going down. We'll see if this happens here as well.

Working on a fontina today.