Blue Cheese got b.linens

[Vnature]

Hi everyone.

I made the blue cheese 2 weeks ago using the classic dorblue recipe. Everything was fine until I noticed yellow spots spreading pretty fast. The rind is slimy now and I am afraid it got some b.linens in the fridge. I tried to wash the rind with 3% vinegar but it didn't help much. Is there any way to stop the infestation? 

[Gregore]

I think blue likes salt more than b linens , but the slime is geo more than likely and b linens takes hold after  the geo  gets the ph up on the surface.

I would wipe the surface with paper towels for the next few days and see if that helps , if not I would go with rubbing some salt onto the surface

But that is just a guess as I have never had this issue .

[Al Lewis]

Let it sit out at room temperature and dry out.  You should air it out at room temp for at least one hour a day.  Don't sweat the other molds as long as it's dry.  They all get together and form the rind and won't hurt a thing.

[Vnature]

Thank You Gregore

They all get together and form the rind and won't hurt a thing.

Wow! What a fantastic blend! What about the taste?

I have already made it in the most brutal way. I scraped the surface with a knife and then prepared a deadly brine of salt and vinegar.  Then I rubbed the cheese with my deadly brine and put it on the bottom shelf of the fridge. The container is opened to lower humidity. I'm not sure this is the best solution. If b.linens  come back, I will follow your advice. Thank You very much

[Al Lewis]

They do not affect the taste.

[Vnature]

The story has ended up. Being tired of fighting the b.linens enemies I cut up the cheesy bastard. 


It was buttery and tasty but a little bitter. PR was not developed enough due to the intense scraping of the surface which blocked the air holes. Next time I wouldn't fight b.linens letting them grow.     

[Danbo]

A cheese for you! :-)

[Al Lewis]

Had you allowed it to develop, and not scraped the outside, the b linens would have formed a rind.  They don't intrude on the cheese at all.  I thought the picture I posted demonstrated that.  Looks like you did get good bluing though.  AC4U.  Watch this video and take note of the rind on these Stiltons when they sample them for ripeness.  Those are b linens on the outside and no, they do not scrape them.  Hope this helps you the next time.

[Vnature]

Thanks for the cheeses 4 the newbie. 

I've got the good news.

I did not touch the cheese from the New Year's Eve. And yesterday I tried it again and realized that I had cut it too early. Now it is quite ripe. Bitterness is completely gone. The texture and taste have become great. A successful attempt.

Al Lewis thanks for the video, very impressive. Next time I will try to make Stilton.

[Al Lewis]

Actually the video was just to demonstrate the fact that the b linens wouldn't hurt your blue cheese.