Well, my first attemp at Crottin may be a failure. It started out with a loose set which I drained in cheese cloth to get a moldable curd. They looked ok week one and mold was growing fine. At 12 days I cut into one and noticed a slightly off flavor to it, but since I have never tasted it before I thought it might be me. Day 13 I noticed a foul smell begining to come from the ripening box. Today, day 14 it smell horrible. I melled the mold throughout the whole ageing process, but this odor is very strong and not appetizing at all (actually it is the opposite I am still feeling a little ill from the smell). They have no visible signs of spoilage, so I am assuming the curds being wet in the begining may have led to to much moisture in the ripening box. I am going to toss them now. Poor little Crottins.
Sorry to hear that Jungle.
The smells I've heard of associated with cheese maturation are :
rotten/dishcloth
sour/cabbagy
caramel/buttery
toffee/blue cheese
garlic/onion
ammonia
Any of these ring a bell in this case?
Sal
Sorry to hear that Junglerott, that can be quite disheartening. I recently had to throw a whole batch of brie, but I will say that I learnt a lot of lessons with that batch.
Hope you next lot turns out for you.
Just as an aside, there are some washed rind cheeses, that apparently develop a very strong unpleasant smell while ripening. Apparently though, this smell doesn't effect the flavour of the cheese. I always wondered how then you would tell if it was off or not. I am still hesitating at making one.
I ended up not tossing it yet. When I went to throw it out I noticed that the smell was gone and only a slight smell of mold was there. I am thinking that the white mold may produce some gases that are being trapped in the ripening box causing the extreme odor when first opened. Have any of you used a ripening box or due you just age the mold ripened cheese open in your cave?
Sal, I would describe the odor as an extremely intense version of the normal mold scent. It made me feel ill when I initially opened the box, but when I opened it to dump it the odor was almost totally gone. I am going to open it to let fresh air in it daily instead of the every other day time frame the recipe says.
Ok slow down dont dump it unless it looks sick, maybe if you can quarantine them that might be wise
I have had my own issues with the cabbagey smells and if I havent opened the cool box in 24 hours it is a bit overwheming but not terrible.
I've just cracked every cheese I've made in 5 weeks. My worst smelling cheese in the past is now the best tasting by far. Completely stable no visible mould etc just mega whiffy for a while.
What temp humidity are you averaging?
Sal
Addnl : This is my gouda mongrel that i described in an earlier post. Honked like hell for a while, but now great taste and good texture. An additional comment is that it has been waxed for about two weeks, when it was waxed it had quite a deep rind that seems to have reduced now by about 50% when I recut it. I didn't think that could happen.
I have it in a closed container in my cave which is 52-54F and 70-80% humidity. The humidity in the box should be around 90% and temp for aging this cheese is recomended at 58%. I will keep it and keep my eye on it. The smell was just so bad, but I have never smelled an aging moldy cheese before so that could be my problem. It looks fine has a nice textured moldy look to it and I tasted one of them 2 days ago. It tasted ok, but seemed to me that it was still not mature enough to taste good. It tasted like a moldy chevre with a little sharpness to it. I'll give it a little more time.
It is gone. :'( I wnet to due my daily cheese maintinance and the Crotttins had a little sag to them. The mold felt loose and when I pulled a piece off some white liquid goo ran out. Since this is supposed to be a crimbly cheese I don't think that goo is a good sign. I guess I'll have to save up another $15 for a gallon of goat milk. My cheese ego is brused. ;D
I have had this problem in the past too. I suspect it is due to not letting the cheese drain/dry enough but would appreciate input from some of the experts here.
I have done the same thing. My guess, which was my issue, was:
-the cheese was not drained properly and stayed way too wet
- inadequate ventilation
I am guessing you got toad skin, which is geo that has gotten way out of hand. It produces a sour/fish smell with a thick rind that will easily slip off the cheese. This is the reason I dislike making white mold cheeses, they are very finicky and once you set the ball in motion, it is difficult to correct a problem.
Yes. Thanks for confirming my suspicions Francois. I know they are not easy but I will try until I perfect them - they are my favorite cheeses to eat ;).
I think my crottins are right behind yours Junglerott. It has been 3 days draining now and they are still very damp feeling. Unfortunately the recipe I tried did not suggest draining first and the drain in the cups is really slow!
I think this may be the first unsuccessful cheese I have ever made in 31 years (of and on) of cheese making. :P
"I guess I'll have to save up another $15 for a gallon of goat milk."
IS that they gong price in Boston?
I know I am the one always complaining about how cheap milk is but I would be happy to get that for mine if I was selling it.
Down here in NC it seems people pay about $10 per gallon for Raw milk - and to me that is a fair price.
I paid $8.79 per 1/2 gallon at the co-op a few weeks ago so that is probaly the going rate up here in general.
I have some cams doing the same thing. I have them in a plastic box, shoebox shape, with a mat and a paper napkin on the bottom to absorb moisture. I think I need to change it. (an maybe throw out the cheese...sigh.)
$5/gal, "that very day fresh," goat's milk. I am so blessed!
I agree with Francois, not drained enough and not enough ventilation. As real caves (natural and artificial) are well ventilated, we at home tend not to pay adequate attention. I use to open my fridge at least every couple of days and let the air change.
Oooo I forgot about them. I washed them about a week ago but they smell like a damp cellar. Erg ... I cut one open for grins
This what they look like:
From here, far away from you :), and without the smell, they look really good and nice. As you were away for some time, just leave them to breathe some fresh air.
Ditto, I think it looks great!
That looks very, very good. If that was my cheese I would attempt to put the entire thing in my mouth...at once.
I love cheese.
I cut off the skin I couldn't get past the damp cellar smell and tried it. It's okay but I think I found out what goaty taste like. Kind of somewhere between a very young cheddar and an old brie I think. Not my best tasting cheese for sure!
Oh..."goaty"...I know a little about that. I bought some cheese the other day that was supposed to be very, "gourmet." It tasted like the back end of a billy goat! It's still in my fridge, drying out and smelling worse than ever. No one will touch the stuff. What makes a cheese become, "goaty," anyway?