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Is there a way to test different brands of milk to see if they will work
for making cheese. 

Thank you

Mike

Hi Mike -the only way is to base it on your own experiences and practices-trial and error. Start with small batches and after you have found a milk that works for you in both practice and taste you can upscale it to meet your needs.

Thank you for the reply zenith1, I thought maybe someone had
come up with a quick test, like heat a cup of milk and add x amount of rennet
and see it it sets, if it doesn't then the milks been UP treated.  I just didn't want to
waste 2 gallons of milk testing.

Thank you

Mike

Sure, just adjust the rennet amount to scale. For a cup of milk, it needs .0484 ml single strength rennet. Should get floc in 10-15 mins and a firm curd in an hour (4-6x multiplier). Increase the rennet amount if you want, which will decrease the time it takes to floc and have a firm set.

Thanks

Mike, I live in Houston, Texas, USA and I've almost always used store bought standard cheap and name brand pasteurized and homogenized whole cow's milk from HEB, Kroger, Randalls (Safeway) etc and have had zero problem getting a rennet coagulated curd set.

That said I haven't tried WalMart's brand, which a few of our members have had problems with. I also haven't tried expensive Organic as it is reportedly UP for longer shelf life.

I did try Meyenberg UP goat's milk once, that did not set.

Hi John.

Just wanted to chime in on the Organic milk. I use Organic milk exclusively. The Horizon brand and the Safeway/Vons/Pavilions house brand and have to report that at least those two are definitely not Ultra Pasturized.

Rudy,

How do you know that they are not UP? They are NOT required to say so on the label. Almost all "organic" milk is UP.

Quote from: KosherBaker on December 07, 2010, 04:45:53 AM
Hi John.

Just wanted to chime in on the Organic milk. I use Organic milk exclusively. The Horizon brand and the Safeway/Vons/Pavilions house brand and have to report that at least those two are definitely not Ultra Pasturized.

Hopefully that includes Carr's, which is the same as Safeway but under a different name (not sure of the relationship ...one own's the other).  I'll check it out on the way home.  I'm still on a quest to find out which milk brand is best around here (Anchorage, AK).

Brian

Quote from: Sailor Con Queso on December 07, 2010, 03:04:56 PM
Rudy,

How do you know that they are not UP? They are NOT required to say so on the label. Almost all "organic" milk is UP.

Granted that while anything may be possible, but the normal UP indicators don't show up for me when I make cheeses with those brands. I don't have coagulation issues and my yields are very good. On par with what I read people having here, and sometimes even greater. Plus I do not use Calcium Chloride. So that lead me to believe that at least those two Brands are not Ultra Pasturized. Nor do they say things like "Extended Shelf Life" or other similar indicators of UP. Maybe it's because I'm in California or maybe because I'm in Los Angeles. Or maybe because I'm a noob who doesn't know what he is talking about. Dunno what to tell you Sailor.

Quote from: tananaBrian on December 07, 2010, 09:49:46 PM
Hopefully that includes Carr's, which is the same as Safeway but under a different name (not sure of the relationship ...one own's the other).  I'll check it out on the way home.  I'm still on a quest to find out which milk brand is best around here (Anchorage, AK).

Brian

Hey Brian. Safeway (Vons/Pavilions) for me has their Organic products under the "O" brand. The label is kind of two colored Orange and Green. I'm curious how that'll work out for you.

I just checked out the Horizon website.  They only specify UP on the shelf stable milk (which I guess would have to be) but there is a consumer hotline number.  I'm curious as well and I'll try to remember to give them a call tomorrow.

Thanks Topuff. And welcome to the board.

Thanks Rudy!  I just called the Horizon consumer hotline and they told me the whole milk is ultra pasturized.  Go figure.   

IMHO, "Organic" milk is usually just a marketing scam. It's generally produced by the big milk corporations using cows from the same feedlots as regular milk. They do just enough to qualify for the organic designation. For example the USDA requirements says organic cows must have "access to pasture." This is completely open to interpretation from being out in the pasture all day to very limited grazing time. So all they need is 10 minutes worth of pasture a month to qualify.... lots more on the internet.

So if it's such great milk, why ultrapasteurize? Because sterilized milk lasts much longer. Creates the illusion that it's "better".

Thanks Topuff, for doing the legwork, I really appreciate it.

Sailor thanks for the tip, I guess I have some reading to do outside of this board. Off to Google I go .....

I guess I should make a confession here, and admit that all of the cheeses I've made so far have been renetless. I've either used buttermilk to vinegar for my coagulation. Perhaps that's the reason for the results I've been getting.