I am using the recipe in Gianaclis Cauldwell's book to make a lactic set bloomy rind in pyramid shapes. I am having issues with the white mold ripening. I am putting cheese in plastic box in an incubator set at 13C to try and get high humidity. After 1 week, I only see the bloomy white on the top of the pyramid. After draining, I salted the pyramids on all sides using two different methods (rolling and using a shaker). I am wondering if the salt is not evenly distributed and that affects the ability of the P. candidium HP6 bloomy white mold to grow? Alternatively, could I have too much Geotrichium candidum Geo15 growth (I used a scale to measure though so I think the ratio of Pen to Geo is OK)? Any ideas would be appreciated.
With Camemberts, I salt on the two flat sides but not the curved side. The PC always blooms on the curved side first but eventually covers the whole cheese. I think that it takes a while for the salt to diffuse through the whole cheese but it does happen.
Here are a few pictures. These are 11 days of ripening in boxes at 13C. Boxes are fairly smelly.
To me it looks like the cheese is ripening very quickly, maybe too quickly. I personally find my lactic bloomies do much better ripening at a lower temperature. I age mine at 46 deg. F (about 8 deg. C) the whole time it is being ripened. For me that has worked the best. You might try some experimentation to see what works for you.
Susan
I suspect that the curd was a little wet when salted , thus extra moisture on the surface
I think you may be getting a little b linens starting
I recommend lowering the humidity a little and airing them out for 30 Minutes each day , if you have a small fan that would be even better