I just took a colby out of the press and it has very little of the color that you would typically would see. I followed the recipe and added 2 drops of the annatto coloring diluted in 1/4 c of water per gallon. What is the members experience with coloring. It appears that it was no where near enough to color the cheese.
as your milk proteins concentrate down to the curds, the coloring will become more evident.
For cheddar I add 8 drops / gallon. This makes my milk a slight cream color, but my cheddar a rich orange.
Thanks for your input Wayne. I had tried a second one at 6 drops per gallon and it was almost what I was looking for. I'll try 8 next time. Also, have you noticed any effect on the color intensity when using different fat content milks, ie 2%- whole? Or is the color bound just to the protein?
I have only ever used Annatto on whole milk, so you now know all I know.
:)
My directions say for an orange color use 18 drops
for every 5qts in 2 tbs water
6 drops for a yellow color
I've been using 45 drops for 4 gal of raw milk, and its just right for me. This would be a higher fat content than store-bought whole milk. It takes a bit more stirring to blend nicely, but the color is great.