|
|
|
|
|
|
This cheese begins with milk held overnite for the cream to rise and then partially skimmed
|
Starter culture is added and ripend for a short time before rennet is added and the curd forms
|
The curd is then cut while still quite soft... first a large cut followed by a short rest
|
and then the curd
is cut quite vigorously
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
until a very fine curd about the size of a grain of rice or wheat
|
the curd is then heated to a high temp of up to 125F to dry it out
|
the final test involves compressing a handful of curd
|
and upon opening the hand a firm mass is formed
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
which will break apart easily with thumb pressure
|
at this point the curd is now ready to be transferred
|
first the whey and curd are transferred to a cloth lined pail
|
to consolidate the curd under the whey into a compact mass
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
this is then transferrred
to the final sanitized form
|
It is presssed into the form with light hand pressure
|
and is soon ready to be turned
in it's cloth
|
a very light weight is applied at this point (about 8 lbs)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
after 30-40 min of light pressure the cheese is turned again
|
the weight is now increased to 25 lbs. for the next hour or so
|
it is important to keep the temperature at 85-95F here
|
the curd is still warm but quite consolidated at this point
note the hand imprint
|
|
|
|
|
|
| The cheese is placed back in the press w/ weight of 85-125 lbs |
and held overnite |
next morning the cooled cheese has become quite consolidated |
and is now ready for a brine to salt and prepare the rind |
 |
 |
during this aging period the rind is kept clean with regular brushings and applications of oil
this aging is done at
54F and 80-85% RH |
|
| The brined cheese is then dried and taken to the cave to ripen |
for the next 12 - 24 months |
|
|
How to make this cheese :
|
The milk is warmed to 90F and innoculated with a Thermophillic culture with Bulgaricus
It is then ripened for 1 hr
rennet is then added to coagulate in 30 min
The curd is first cut to 1"
followed by 5 min rest
It is then cut quickly to 1/4'
followed by a long stir
Following this the curd is scalded to 114F over the next 30 min.
|
Once the curd reaches it's scald temp the stirring continues until proper dryness
At this point the whey is drained down to the curd level and a weighted plate is then applied to begin the pre-press
Following this, the consolidated curd mass can now be gathered in a cloth and drained before transferring to the waiting form
Pressing begins with 25lbs and continues overnight with increasing press weight to 50-125 lbs depending on intended ageing
|
The mold is then removed and the cheese is brined for 48 hrs
The Salted cheese will then go to a cool room w/ moderate humidity (75%) for 2-3 days until a firm rind is formed.
Following this it goes to the cave at 54F and 85% RH
It will then receive a light coating of olive oil weekly for the nect 8-10 weeks followed by periodic oil and wiping for the next 14-24 months
|
|
|
|