Need guidance about my Tomme mold

[umgowa]

I just got a new Tomme mold from Dairy Connection.  I wanted their smallest mold because I simply want to make cheese in smaller quantities right now.  The smallest one they have is 7.5" in diameter and 3.5" high.  They told me it was designed to accommodate 1.5  to 2 gallons of milk.  I think they may have been wrong and I would like some guidance here.  I just looked at another web site . . New England Cheese Making Supply Company . . . . And their large Tomme mold is the exact same size as the one ( Dairy Connection calls small) I have from Dairy Connection.  What's more, New England tells me this mold is designed to accommodate 4 to 5 gallons of milk.  This is much too much for me right now.  New England has a nice smaller mold that is 5.25" in diameter and 2.5" high.  It says it is designed to accommodate 1 to 1.5 gallons of milk.  This is perfect for me.   For those of you with experience and knowing the dimensions of the larger of these two molds, (7.5"X3.5")  Which quantity of milk is right?  Dairy Connection who says 1.5 to 2 gallons?  Or New England Cheese Making who says 4 to 5 gallons?  Thank you for any clarification you can give me.

[Sailor Con Queso]

The information from NECMS is correct. Dairy Connection is a wonderful source. You should call them and explain your findings. You are eventually going to want the larger mold, so you should hang on to it.

[iratherfly]

I have that same mold from the Daity Connection, it is meant for 4 Gallons of milk. I did make a few 2 gallon cheeses in it that came out like disks but were still nice 2Lbs. wheels.

Living in an apartment in the city and aging cheese in wine refrigerator I must resort to smaller molds. I looked at Kadova molds which I think are amazing but I find it disturbing that the small ones cost $50.  I have been working with the mold from New England Cheesemaking that came with my initial hard cheese kit from way back when I just started making cheese - it is conical in shape so you can never place a follower in it because the diameter changes as it moves down. Your follower will be either too small - which will cause a depression in the center and a nasty raised lip, or too large - which will cause it to get stuck mid way through pressing (It's more like a Ricotta draining basket than a mold).

I just ordered a bunch of molds from an Israeli online store (probably can't read this but you can see the photos http://www.home-cheese.com/shop/products-list.asp?CategoryID=44) specifically this one http://www.home-cheese.com/shop/product-info.asp?ProductID=370 - is a 2.2 L / 75 Fl. Oz. 6" diameter, 7" high - which I am betting on. It's imported from Italy and the cost of 28 N.I.S is approx $7.50 so not bad at all. I will get them in about 10 days. I hope some of these will work out. In the meantime if you hear of any solution - please post it, I obviously have the same problem as you do.

Here is a photo in one of my other posts of a Tomme that was made out of 2 Gallons in the 7.5"x3.5" Tomme mold from the Dairy Connection https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=3442.0;attach=7899;image - it looked improportionally thin when I made it but cutting through it, the size made sense. It's almost the same proportions as the much larger wheel of Gruyère http://images.travelpod.com/users/lovin_apples/1.1221363000.38-1.jpg

[Alex]

Be carefull, the 2.2 liter mould is not intented to use for pressed cheeses, it's only for dripping.

[iratherfly]

Have you used it? (You actually have access to that shop, unlike me). Why can't I press cheese in it if it's in cheesecloth? (just light to medium pressure, nothing heavy)

[Alex]

As the picture is very out of focus, I can not be sure. Let's say, if the mould is sturdy like the left one on the pic, you may apply a very light pressure on the cheese, 1-3 kg.

[iratherfly]

Cool, I think it would be useful for the softer Tommes and the small one for my lactic cheese recipe.

[DeejayDebi]

I have that same mold from the Daity Connection, it is meant for 4 Gallons of milk. I did make a few 2 gallon cheeses in it that came out like disks but were still nice 2Lbs. wheels.

Living in an apartment in the city and aging cheese in wine refrigerator I must resort to smaller molds. I looked at Kadova molds which I think are amazing but I find it disturbing that the small ones cost $50. 

http://www.ullmers-dairyequipment.com/cheesemolds.htm