CheeseForum.org » Forum

Just cracked open a 3-month wheel of montasio. Flavor came out pretty good, but the texture is super flaky. I would expect this from an older cheese, but three months? Looking back over my notes, I was having a struggle getting my curd to break cleanly, so I raised the temp up to 107-degrees before cutting the curd. Otherwise, everything looks normal. The pressing weight never exceeded 10 pounds.

Any ideas on why it was so flaky?

Thanks!

Do you know what your pH was during the make, esp. at draining?

Backcountry-not an untypical problem. Sounds like you are missing your Ph targets. Raising the temperature will affect the moisture of the curd but will not impact the point at which the curd is cut. That point is controlled by the amount of rennet and how much starter culture you have used along with how long a ripening phase you used. Again the nasty PH demon raises his head. Have you tried to use the spinning bowl method? Try searching fro that method on the forum and give it a go.

Ah PH. That makes mountains of sense. I'll check it more carefully next time. Thanks!