Hello from Southern Arizon

[GoingGalt]

Hello from Sierra Vista Arizona.  I'm a semi-retired, semi-homesteading novice cheese maker hoping to master a few types of cheese as a way to increase my family's self-sufficiency (I hate buying stuff I can make or raise myself).  I raise goats, hair sheep and a milk cow.  I started making cheese a few years ago as a way to deal with the excess milk.  So far I've made decent Chevre, Mozzarella, and Feta.  I'm a beginner with Cheddar, Monterey Jack and Manchego but my results have been promising (they're being eaten without prompting from me).  Virtually everything I've done so far is from Ricki Carroll's book Home Cheese Making.  I've pretty much used it as my cheese bible.  I only recently found this forum and am thankful for it.  I hope to post some of my successes and failures in the near future.  Thus far I've not really taken good notes of my cheeses (one of the things I've learned here is pretty important).

Bill   

[Kern]

Welcome to the Forum.  You can learn a lot from the members here.

[awakephd]

Welcome! Lots to learn here. If you are in the market for a second book, I highly recommend Mastering Artisan Cheesemaking by Gianaclis Caldwell -- not just recipes, but SO helpful in understanding the parameters that go into each type of cheese.

What are "hair sheep"? Since this term occurred next to "milk cow," I am having mental pictures of hair coming out of the udders of that poor sheep ... !

[GoingGalt]

Thank you for the book recommendation.  I'm gonna get it.  I want to understand more about cheese without having to go back to college.  Hair sheep are sheep that don't have wool (no shearing; they shed any undercoat grown over winter) and are raised primarily for meat.  I have American Blackbellys.  They're beautiful and very resilient animals but are a bit on the wild side (not in-your-face cuddly at all).   

[awakephd]

Live and learn ... I feel a bit sheepish for not knowing that.