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Hello all
Well,  Tomorrow I am going to start again on another cheddar to see if I can repeat my process from last week.  The goal is to distill the recipe and process from last week into a verifiable repeatable process.

List of Ingredients:

• 6gal whole pasteurized/homogenized off the shelf milk (1.99/gall at SAMS Club)
• 3/8 tsp Choozit MA11 (.9g)
• 36 drops double strength Annatto (diluted in 2/3 cup distilled water)
• 3tsp CaCl2
• 1.5tsp veal rennet (diluted in 3/4 cup distilled water)
• 3.3oz of flaked salt

My Goals:

• To repeat the process from last week
• To make a cheddar that is a bit more yellow.
• To bandage cheese in muslin and lard

Here is what I am gonna try.

• increase Annatto from 4 drops/gal to 6 drops/gal
• use 6oz of salt

Basic Process:

• Add milk to vat, start heating to 90degF
• Add Annatto
• When milk is at 90, add Culture.  Stir in for 1 min
• Wait 43 min then add CaCl2
• Wait 2 min then add Rennet Solution
• Wait 45 min or until clean break, cut curd, then let rest for 15min
• Stir curd and begin heating protocol from 90-100 degF  That is 2 deg/5min
• Stir Occainsionally at 100def for 30 min. or until pH 6.15
• Drain curd, not too long to avoid matting
• place in pan, stir curds with fingers, avoid mashing
• Add salt in two phases, allowing for slower absorption
• Stir every 5 min for 1 hour
• place in 8"mould
• Press@.2PSI for 15 min
• Remove from mould/flip/redress/re-mould
• Press@.5PSI for 30 min
• Remove from mould/flip/redress/re-mould
• Press@2.5PSI for 2hours
• Remove from mould/flip/redress/re-mould
• Press@6.5PSI for 24 Hours

Here is how it is playing out in real-life:

Time	Task	Water Temp	Milk Temp	pH
6:35am	Added Milk to Vat	120	37	6.90
6:50am	Added Annatto	112	60	6.99
6:52am	Heat On	112	60	6.99
7:13am	Heat Off	120	77	6.77
7:23am	heating	115	83	6.73
7:29am	Heat On	114	86	6.71
7:33am	Heat Off	116	88	6.71
7:39am	Culture Added	116	90	6.75 (odd)
8:25am	CaCL2 added	104	91	6.66
8:29am	Rennet Added	104	91	6.59
8:53am	Heat On	99.5	90	Not taken
9:15am	curd Cut Heat Off 15min rest	124	90	6.59
9:31am	Start scald	125	87	6.56
9:56am	scald	129	96	6.45
10:01am	scald	130	98	6.42
10:07am	scald Done Heating	133	100	6.40
10:22am	Holding temp @ 100	133	100	6.30
10:25am	Holding temp @ 100	133	101	6.27
10:41am	Fished hold temp @ 100	133	101	6.15
11:01am	added 3 tbls salt	117	100	NA
11:14am	added 3 tbls salt	115	100	NA
11:31am	Data Point 16 min left in stir	115	100	5.92

Notes:
Rennet Time:
pH was .09 too low. (when compared to last week) at rennet time

End of cooking/scalding Phase:
pH was .12 too low. (when compared to last week) at end of scald time. The 30 hold at 100 deg period will end when pH reaches 6.15.  This took 52 min last week. I anticipate this taking less than 30 this week.  My concern is that the curd will not have enough time to release enough whey.  May end up with curds too moist. This took 34 min this week 18 min less time than last week.

pH during Stir phase:
pH is righ on schedule for stirring and should be same as last week when curds go into mould. (this is due to time adjustment above.)

Wrap up

OVerall I am satisfied that the operational process is repeatable. 
Since my "cooking/scalding" phase was 18 min shorter this time,  I think my curds are a bit more moist than last week.

The key here is using the pH meter to guage where I am in the process.

I have also decided that in the past I have used too much culture and I let it acidify without validation of where it was. 

This was from one of my previous posts and it is work repeating:
"The manufacture of Cheddar cheese is more dependent on uniform starter activity than that of washed curd cheeses, such as Gouda. The proper rate of acid development, particularly before the whey is drained from the curd, is essential if the required chemical composition of the cheese is to be obtained. However, the curd is' cooked' to expel moisture at a temperature that normally adversely affects the starter bacteria. The cheesemaker must therefore exert judgment to ensure that the desired acid development in the curd is reached at about the same time as the required moisture content." (http://books.google.com/books?id=c7cacFl04bgC&pg=PA4&lpg=PA4&dq=%22The+manufacture+of+Cheddar+cheese+is+more+dependent+on+uniform+starter+activity+than+that+of+washed+curd+cheeses,+such+as+Gouda.%22&source=bl&ots=atilAY6PPT&sig=RFqiry5xyhJ1vfYXC-FdBz89gEY&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result)

I don't know if I hit the correct required moisture content. I know it was different from last week. Given that my pH was "ahead" of schedule I quit the cooking/scalding phase a bit early and the curd was noticably more moist than before.  Its hard to say if it was too moist.  So far, I am not overy concerned.

Some Pics:
New Muslin:
My lovely wife indulged me and made a muslin liner for my 8" mould:
(http://vxxwgg.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pOjRk1ZRoJ_v0Y_f5rJCh1D03v3dWVSKsLuLmkzUdFVMKKFsU1fy8qneVBoRY7k5IWhhoXjJTHPFgfzDmRMQ4K7MSqyj8vGff/DSC_0126.jpg)
(http://vxxwgg.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pA9EbwnBckW50TxGQsBtUVSVAOAMt43QRiLYTlLtyblQqr8T8o54iMHHb_RFWmnoRO4erO3tq871tEqBrsH0NwES520NnqozT/DSC_0127.jpg)
(http://vxxwgg.blu.livefilestore.com/y1p152OB0R-XSm2WOdpxojVWmnZiw8WBUcmla3NSubyl14G5Ty_x4frGf8NUxJAn5yT8yka9ZxXtK1gsY6xPH8Y1HyzQXwuV_DW/DSC_0128.jpg)
(http://vxxwgg.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pPYMDdx85UcjVg4E2nyc2OwQR_0O1K4AMKNk_ql8NSKhBaBVmLhNoF0aYzxpIML4kMZe6zYEtAATuCzzNmOctNc9Bc2REw6zk/DSC_0129.jpg)
The Curd:
(http://vxxwgg.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pZfLMJBo8ZX1jJsJbJYqfGcL0ZP-oejiP8CShmqYreaXxXmAsYPVGBoht-Jjpvn1YbOjRfqK_EGa82jD3hFM_1cWxptfdKeQE/DSC_0131.jpg)
My Press configured for heavy pressing.  (taking this to 10PSI  ~ 500lbs)
(http://vxxwgg.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pjB6Z6RdbPyXaPuALVEK0COg_PCksQnXXlm_PxAIlqhHVwN2BwxObNo4lJGyWzY89ZtSr5HxkaNsg5ECuGEhnfyZUnAEaGE6o/DSC_0132.jpg)

The Cheese under pressure.  10PSI
(http://vxxwgg.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pAMHwttn-2XtajGi_BAiJbyLyrPNOeQtOA9pHmPHG5IGzl2eOIpIgKSlqwuvETMSKR2vQdqRZ6rcMYrDjZWAimX8ZUf131ptF/DSC_0125.jpg)

Nice! Great wife you got there!

Out of the press:

(http://vxxwgg.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pOrnj2-fMYbXj3J_zY4wPjaHW8ZzWf8MCpJu0OaQHyGjThxyscsmradoO-q3tj-CNG4BCBe9q4I8G8c4i3xvZfuoDLhkVqhpV/DSC_0130.jpg)

(http://vxxwgg.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pK1MHP660HS6LIx_jdKt2u56X_6JpKjww0y7dZ7id5UWlnzK209rBPSJptW8MufRNbtiIE9gnbrEqsxOibFHpy_3UoEEh_zoM/DSC_0129.jpg)

Bandages and lard:
(http://vxxwgg.blu.livefilestore.com/y1p5qI5rsrW98WWrZ7WKgBByxGZVLSsXd7-7xdFlKg4-FYUKIvtxCfP0yUWb3IyHQ-iEFP5HIoi02atF4OTG8pKsIA8inZzx9eu/DSC_0131.jpg)

I'm not real happy with the knit.  Still looks like there is some openness to the curd.  The pH is right on target.  I used 510lbs of downforce to provide 10psi  (8"mould has 50.25sqin).

I am open to suggestions.

Wayne,
As always, the cheese looks great, but those muslin liners...WOW!
I've already hit my wife up to make me some of these. She said she would but then gave me that little "wife jab" about thinking she had heard that my cheesemaking season was over.  :D
I took my swiss out of the brine a few minutes ago and also gave my latest Stilton a second piercing.
Honestly, I'm not sure I'll be able to lay off of cheesemaking for the entire summer. Man, this is one fun and challenging hobby!
Like I said, as always, you've turned out a very very nice looking cheese.
Hopefully it will age well and give you the results you are looking for.

Dave

Wayne,

You reference your disappointment in the "knit." I notice that my traditional cheddars have a more open curd than my farmhouse chedddars. Any thoughts as to why the curd is more open sometimes than other times, or from one cheddar recipe to another?

Wayne,  I was wondering if you were satisfied with the color, since that was one of your goals.  I have decided upon about 11 drops of anatto per gal as good for me (45 drops for 4 Gal.), producing a nice rich almost orange color.

Also, is the muslin bag cumbersome when flipping?

Zinger,  I don't know why.  I'm imagining that the answer lies with temperature of the curd, moisture levels in the curd, and time in the press.

I am still pondering all those factors.  This is a problem that needs solved.


Rich,  11 drops per gal?  wow.  On the other hand, I was not satisfied with 6.  I will be adding 8 drops per gallon next time.

The muslin bags were simple during the flip.  I simply peeled it off,  then flipped the cheese and dropped it back in the bad.  Kinda like bagging groceries.  Then dropped the whole bag back in the mould.  No pain, no strain.
I will always use the bags going forward.  No more cheese cloth for me.

As I sit an ponder the curd knitting problem I am having,  I think the approach I am going to take is adding more pressure earlier on in the process.  I am going to assume that the curds do that majority of the knitting when they are moister and warmer. 

I think I will add more wieght at the beginning.  Not enought to squeeze the butter fat out, or break apart the casein micelles, but more pressure to start the knitting process.

I have been using .2PSI (which works out to about 10lbs).  I may increase that initial pressure to 1-2psi.

Thoughts?

Well - your way ahead of me in experience and expertise, but it does seem logical. What does 1 -2 psi work out to in terms of pounds?

You may have noticed my posting in "Making a Wine Cheese," I posted a picture of my poor curd knitting. In that post I posited the idea of making a ricotta that is blended with wine and then pressing that "wine ricotta" into my cheddar. DO you think that this make a difference in my curd knitting? Also, what do you think of that idea to produce a wine cheese similar to Cahill's?

Zinger,

I would argue that you are further along than you think,  you have found this place and that a big part of it.

1-2 pound per square inches across 50.25 square inches is 50.25lb or 100.5lbs of down force.

I will have to look at your wine cheesed before I comment.  I really don't know much about them...

Duh - I should have thought the question through before I asked. But that sure sounds like a huge increase in weight, from 10lbs to 50lbs.

Wayne,  I think you're on target with more initial pressing weight.  I have been using 1.7 psi for my traditional cheddar, which translates to 33 lbs on a 6" mold.  I haven't had any knitting problem at the end, but its still pretty open at the first cycle or two.  My final pressure is almost 4 psi. and my surface looks really good at that.

Great feedback Rich,  thanks so much.

Wayne your cheese looks great. I see a few places that are dimpled are you sure it's not the cloth? Your tough!

Wayne,  what does the cheese weigh at this point? What is the yield in lbs from 6 gal of milk?

Wayne you're going to hate me, but I think less weight early on is better.

I've tried quite a few times harder initial pressure and it always turns out bad. When you press hard early on it really pushes the curd into the holes and thereby not allowing the whey to fully drain. I think the bad knit, sounds like a punk rock band now playing The Bad Knit, comes from something else. You've mentioned that you do keep it warm during the cheddaring phase so must be something else.

Actually the more I look at the pics the more I noticed it's wrinkled from the cloth and doesn't seem to be the knit. So you may be alright.

Here it is aging:

OK, will in preparing for the use of my new cave, I have decided to open all my bandaged cheese.

It really was interesting to work with something so incredibly nasty, but then to have it yield such pristine goodness inside.  this cheese, while young, was incredible. 

Mild cheddar, not sour, not bitter,  creamy.  just perfect.  Melted in your mouth.

But,  I failed to achieve a completely closed curd.


While it is more closed than usual, it is not a perfectly knitted block of cheese.  It seams that shear pressure is not the answer to a completely closed curd.

I have more research to do.  I am considering vacuum pressing, although I am at a complete and udder loss as to how to approach it.

Wayne, that looks really good.  The one thing I would say is that you don't have to bang yourself up too much about the very mild openness to the curd.  I've had numerous really good cheddars that have had a structure similar to yours.  Very nice and I'm sure it is really good.  We really need to set up some sort of cheese exchange program here to allow us to taste and critique our cheeses!! ;D

Ryan

Oh yeah... buy the way.. you said udder!  ::)
(http://udderviewfarm.com/images/2UVFLOGO.jpg)

I have actually thought about some kind of exchange program as well.
I would love to get some honest feedback from someone other than the the neighborhood boozers that wolf it down after closing time.

lol - "udder"  actually I've peppered previous posts with the same 'accidental' misspelling, you are the first to say something.

I believe we should try and implement some sort of exchange program.  Hell they do it with foreign students all the time and they don't spoil too much during shipping! :)  No but seriously, This time of year would work well.  Other than the dead heat of summer I think it could be done with some success.  They ship brewers yeast and such all year around.  With a couple of those cold packs and some decent insulation packaged in a priority mail (usually 2 day and inexpensive) box... I would think that most hard cheeses would be fine for a couple of day trip.

May have to start another tread seeing if anyone has ordered cheese online before and how it arrives... Anyway, Wayne I'd be willing to try shipping a little of this or that back and forth to see how it would go.

Ryan

I agree don't beat yourself up, let someone else do it. No, really that looks beautiful. And to contradict you even further I wouldn't call that an unclosed curd. I would say it's fully closed and those areas are voids from not milling the curds with a profession curd mill.

Vacuum Pressing: (http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/119729068/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0)

"A study was made of the influence of several factors on the texture of young and mature vacuum-pressed rindless cheese. Pressures greater than 26 lb/in2 were required for maximum improvement in texture. A vacuum of 15 in was less effective than a vacuum of 25 in. Vacuum pressing of 'dressed' cheese for 5 min was almost as effective as vacuum pressing for 17 h; vacuum pressing after dressing was more effective than before dressing; transfer of vacuum-pressed cheese to a normal press for the completion of pressing did not affect texture. Vacuum treatment of curd before hooping and pressing in the normal way had no beneficial effect on texture; vacuum pressing improved the texture of cheese made with mixed-strain starters although this cheese was not as close as vacuum-pressed cheese made with single strain starters.

The distinct improvement in cheese texture which resulted from some combinations of vacuum pressing condition was confirmed in commercial scale trials involving 2,540 rindless cheese. This improvement was evident when cheese were graded at two weeks and when regraded at maturity."