Bad cheese making day

[Ptucker]

I started making a traditional cheddar and all was going well until the cheaddaring phase. The PH went from 6.1 to 4.8 in less than an hour, I am not sure what happened but I am pressing it anyways.

[DeejayDebi]

Maye it was just a hicough in your meter? Always press on!

[Ptucker]

I triple checked the meter and it was correct. The curds even have an acidic taste (sour). I think I may have used to much starter 3/4 tsp of MA 011, it is a shame too as it was a 6 gal batch.

[linuxboy]

I would give it a little more salt to slow down ripening, press, and age it out in the cooler end of the range... 45F or so. Will be more crumbly, but not terrible in a year. It happens to all of us. Cheddar can be tricky.

[Ptucker]

Thanks, that makes me feel a little better, I did add 1 tsp of extra salt. I will put it in the back of the cave where she is a @ 45-48 degrees F. I make a lot of cheddar and that is the first time I have seen the PH take such a fast drop. Do you know why such a quick drop in PH? It would be nice to avoid it in the future. I wonder if a quart of 10% brine with 1/2  tsp baking soda for a few hours would help or is it too late to alter Ph levels? It is funny how your mind works when the make does not go as well as you hope. I am always trying to find a fix for my mistakes.