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I made a renegade blue that I posted about previously and it started as a tomme style make and got pierced, etc. but I don't have a good place for aging blues so it's been in a fluctuating temperature with too much moisture.  The external flora smells musty and I finally decided to cut it open to assess whether the chickens or wildlife who visit our compost pile should be getting it.  I'll attache the photos so you can see what it looks like inside.  It's got some reddish color just under one surface and I remember reading somewhere that it's a color you don't want to see.  I didn't try any and may not ever if it's a potential disaster to my health but please, does anyone have any experience or advice on whether this might be edible at some point or if it's dangerous?

Boy, that's a great question. How do you know when your moldy product has gotten moldy?

The only great terror that I am familiar with is BLACK MOLD. Are there other colors or foreign incursions of which we should be aware (in cheese)?

I think Sailor is the resident micro-analyst, but a word from linuxboy or Francois might help too.

-Boofer-

One can't tell by color alone. Your chances of getting sick from mold toxins in cheese is miniscule. Toxic mold just doesn't grow on cheese. Bacterial pathogens are far, far more likely.

I'd eat it.

Personally, I'd give that blue paste a taste without hesitation.  Perhaps only a little to start.  That pinkish red hunk and the rind on the other hand, well....

How does the paste smell?

I think I read somewhere on the forum that more than 99.7% of the mold that grows on cheese is harmless. May not all be tasty, but to me that modicum of risk is worth it.  Then again I've eaten raw oysters from a roadside stand in Alaska.  My dad thought I was crazy, but they were damn good.

Since the mold safety issue is perhaps the #1 question I get from friends and family I'm curious to know more specifics too.

Any obvious signs of pathogenic bacteria infestation that you can note for us linuxboy?  Bacterial contamination sounds to be much more insidious and difficult to detect.

On further inspection, the blue looks like it could be aspergillus, but it's hard to know from a photo.  A telltale 'pinesol' taste would suggest asp.   I don't mind a touch of asp in a rind or a little pocket to have to carve out of the paste. If the blue is mostly aspergillus though, that would be a lot to work around and it probably won't be palatable.  Heck, I would take a little bite of that reddish chunk too. 

Do tell if you taste any of it, Kathrin.

I read somewhere that the discovery of most great styles of cheese followed the phrase, "and so I ate it anyway."  I'd at least try a taste, you never know.

Looks tasty.

QuoteAny obvious signs of pathogenic bacteria infestation that you can note for us linuxboy?  Bacterial contamination sounds to be much more insidious and difficult to detect.

Which? Listeria, not so much. Coliform, you'll smell a distinct note of sh*t, or paste defects, but that's rather rare. 157, for example doesn't really leave a huge trace because it doesn't outcompete LABs that well, but can still be present enough to cause some damage. Pseudomonas smells like shrimp, is fishy, but not a concern in the US... more an issue in France and other areas with water supply issues. Salmonella honestly not huge risk vector, and won't be that detectable organoleptically. Staph honestly not a huge issue for cheese. Listeria is the big one. But you can mitigate listeria through rind management and aging, provided initial CFU load is not extreme.

Similarly, smelly cheese usually not pathogenic. But might give you digestive upset.

My approach of eating everything is not a best practice for food safety or practice. But, I'd rather go out enjoying some stinky cheese on my own terms, anyway. Life is not worth living without raw milk cheese.

I read everyone's comments and felt an internal, "Oh sh*t.  Consensus is that I should probably try it.".  . Okay, I'll be brave.....in a moment.  Just back to the house with a load of straw and shavings to take up to the barn.  Stopped at the house for a snack since I didn't sleep much last night and am whupped.  Not sure if I'm ready to be challenged by this cheese but maybe after I've had my tea.....

Hey, I feel better.

Anyone taking notes?

-Boofer-

Hey!  It tasted great!  A bit salty but a real blue flavor....not that I am at all knowledgable about blue cheese.  I think I could use it on salads and I can't think of what else yet.  If I awake tomorrow I'll know it's safe! 

In case of your untimely demise, I call dibs on your remaining cheese.

CALLED IT, PEOPLE!!

I mean... hope you'll be OK.

Quote from: linuxboy on June 28, 2013, 12:18:01 AM
In case of your untimely demise, I call dibs on your remaining cheese.

CALLED IT, PEOPLE!!

I mean... hope you'll be OK.

Aaaaaah, That made me laugh loudly, and from the belly.....that same belly that is feeling good enough to make me think your dibs won't get to be exercised.  Think of it this way......if it killed me and then got mailed to you it'd be even more lethal by the time it got there.  You're probably lucky on this one.   

Quoteit'd be even more lethal by the time it got there.

{goggles on}

Bring it!

(safety fourth)