When I was in Vermont, at the Cheese Maker's class, I met a person who works at a nearby College where they have a small-scale industrial, creamery. The College has a long history of agriculture curricula and the creamery was once attached to a large tie-stall barn. I was invited to visit and be a helper, so I jumped at that!
The room has several bulk-tanks for milk storage, a pasteurizing tank, several cheese vats, a press, and much more. It was a real eye-opener for me to get my hands wet and see small-scale cheese making equipment. The creamery makes fresh-cheeses and ice cream that is used in the College dining halls and also sold retail through a restaurant/store owned in part by the College. The pasteurizer is inspected and licensed so that any of the products (except fluid milk) can be sold to the public. The biggest limitation on its potential as a cheese making plant is the lack of sufficient aging facilities. Right now, the walk-in cooler where the hard cheese can be stored is also where cases of beverages and other 'stuff' are stored, so it is not a controlled climate at all.
Although we still have not made a batch of cheese where temperature was set, culture was added, rennet added, curds cut, etc. etc.; we did make a couple small batches of fresh cheese and ricotta. I did get to help pasteurize a batch of milk and learn how many things work around there. I hope to stay involved there through the summer, at least.
In my own cheese cellar, I had some discouraging news as I cut into a few of the cheeses I have been aging, only to see the results of over-use of both cultures and rennet! Pretty much terrible cheese. But, I'm learning slowly how various parts of the puzzle fit together as I strive to make artisan cheese. My Brick Cheese (like a Limburger - but milder) showed the best results, but other cheeses were very acidic and nasty. I won't give up.
peace,
Cheesey-boy
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
Cheesemaking 101
My two-day class for Beginner Cheesemakers was illuminating, at times overwhelming, entertaining and overall a very worthwhile endeavor for me. The scenery in both Vermont and Eastern New York was beautiful as well; making the three hours of driving each way easier to take. I was driving through portions of the Green Mountains of Vermont and Washington County , New York where rural living still has a strong foot-hold and I felt a certain serenity as I drove along trout streams and between low, rambling mountains. In a word: Beautiful!
The spring runoff had made the Batten Kill un-fishable for me on Monday, but by Wednesday afternoon the waters had lowered enough for me to make an honest attempt at catching some fish. I was only able to catch one brown trout in one of the smaller, feeder-steams, but sometimes just going through the motions of fishing a stream is good enough for me. I fished near the historic, Rexleigh covered bridge which I'm sure you can find images of on the Web.
At cheese class, our group of 10 made a 15-gallon batch of Tomme from fresh, Jersey-cow milk. Tomme cheeses are semi-soft with a rind that is usually washed with brine for several weeks before letting the cave molds grow until it's deemed ready to sell; usually at 3 months of age. We got to watch the Bardwell Farm cheese makers working each day; everything from cutting and cooking the curds, hooping the cheese, setting the press to the work done in the cold-storage (cheese cave) where all the ripening wheels of cheese are turned, washed, brushed and sampled.
We talked at length about milk composition and quality where I heard that most artisan cheese makers prefer their animals to be grass-fed or dry hay fed, but no silage. We discussed the various starter cultures that cheese makers have to work with now-days. One of the things I learned about my stove-top creamery is that I have been using too much of both the cultures and the rennet, resulting in tart, acidic, pasty cheese. I will also need to begin using a pH-meter to track the acidity of the curds and whey during the 'make' since the levels of acidity effect the cheese moisture content, texture and set the stage for the 2 to 4 month ripening process that is so important for producing fine-quality, aged cheese. My 'cheese cave' is something I will need to work on also; cool, moist conditions with good air circulation are the prerequisites. Modifying an old refrigerator will probably work, but I can no longer just wing-it in my cellar.
I got to sample almost all the different cheeses made at the Bardwell Farm and wash 'em down with a great Vermont beer from the Magic Hat brewery.
While the Web is a great resource to begin my education into artisan cheese making, there is no better way to learn a craft than through a hands-on workshop like the one I attended. If you are curious about it, search for "Peter Dixon, cheese maker" and you'll see what I mean.
Peace,
Cheesey-boy
The spring runoff had made the Batten Kill un-fishable for me on Monday, but by Wednesday afternoon the waters had lowered enough for me to make an honest attempt at catching some fish. I was only able to catch one brown trout in one of the smaller, feeder-steams, but sometimes just going through the motions of fishing a stream is good enough for me. I fished near the historic, Rexleigh covered bridge which I'm sure you can find images of on the Web.
At cheese class, our group of 10 made a 15-gallon batch of Tomme from fresh, Jersey-cow milk. Tomme cheeses are semi-soft with a rind that is usually washed with brine for several weeks before letting the cave molds grow until it's deemed ready to sell; usually at 3 months of age. We got to watch the Bardwell Farm cheese makers working each day; everything from cutting and cooking the curds, hooping the cheese, setting the press to the work done in the cold-storage (cheese cave) where all the ripening wheels of cheese are turned, washed, brushed and sampled.
We talked at length about milk composition and quality where I heard that most artisan cheese makers prefer their animals to be grass-fed or dry hay fed, but no silage. We discussed the various starter cultures that cheese makers have to work with now-days. One of the things I learned about my stove-top creamery is that I have been using too much of both the cultures and the rennet, resulting in tart, acidic, pasty cheese. I will also need to begin using a pH-meter to track the acidity of the curds and whey during the 'make' since the levels of acidity effect the cheese moisture content, texture and set the stage for the 2 to 4 month ripening process that is so important for producing fine-quality, aged cheese. My 'cheese cave' is something I will need to work on also; cool, moist conditions with good air circulation are the prerequisites. Modifying an old refrigerator will probably work, but I can no longer just wing-it in my cellar.
I got to sample almost all the different cheeses made at the Bardwell Farm and wash 'em down with a great Vermont beer from the Magic Hat brewery.
While the Web is a great resource to begin my education into artisan cheese making, there is no better way to learn a craft than through a hands-on workshop like the one I attended. If you are curious about it, search for "Peter Dixon, cheese maker" and you'll see what I mean.
Peace,
Cheesey-boy
Friday, April 2, 2010
Off to Cheese-school
Next week I will travel to Vermont for a two-day cheese maker's class, and I am psyched!
The class will be held at a farm right on the Vermont/New York border, about due east from Lake George. Here's the farm's website: [www.considerbardwellfarm.com]
I am also looking forward to sampling some of their prize-winning cheeses.
I've learned a lot about cheese making from books and internet places, but I know I will learn much from Peter Dixon and also get to use real cheese making equipment! Where I use one, maybe two gallons of milk in a double-boiler on the stovetop; at the farm they are able to make much bigger batches . Although this class is not specifically about the aging processes for different cheese, I bet I'll learn a thing or two about how to properly age my cheese, as well. Right now, I am still a bit nervous when I see mold on the rind of my Romano or Brick cheeses.
Tonight I made a Feta cheese from some fresh goat milk that I was able to source nearby, and with the whey I made a Norwegian cheese called Gjetost. (look it up in Wikapedia)
Tomorrow I'll get a chance to sample the Gjetost as a spreadable cheese. It didn't get as dark, and I didn't try to press it into a block like the commercial varieties.
When I was about 7 years old, my family hosted a student from Norway and he had this brown-cheese shipped over for us to try. It is quite different from every cheese we know of here in America; sweet and grainy, if I remember right.
A totally unrelated thing about this trip to cheese-school is that I will be taking some time to do a little trout fishing in one of VT/NY's great trout streams: the Batten Kill.
Peace,
Cheesey-boy
The class will be held at a farm right on the Vermont/New York border, about due east from Lake George. Here's the farm's website: [www.considerbardwellfarm.com]
I am also looking forward to sampling some of their prize-winning cheeses.
I've learned a lot about cheese making from books and internet places, but I know I will learn much from Peter Dixon and also get to use real cheese making equipment! Where I use one, maybe two gallons of milk in a double-boiler on the stovetop; at the farm they are able to make much bigger batches . Although this class is not specifically about the aging processes for different cheese, I bet I'll learn a thing or two about how to properly age my cheese, as well. Right now, I am still a bit nervous when I see mold on the rind of my Romano or Brick cheeses.
Tonight I made a Feta cheese from some fresh goat milk that I was able to source nearby, and with the whey I made a Norwegian cheese called Gjetost. (look it up in Wikapedia)
Tomorrow I'll get a chance to sample the Gjetost as a spreadable cheese. It didn't get as dark, and I didn't try to press it into a block like the commercial varieties.
When I was about 7 years old, my family hosted a student from Norway and he had this brown-cheese shipped over for us to try. It is quite different from every cheese we know of here in America; sweet and grainy, if I remember right.
A totally unrelated thing about this trip to cheese-school is that I will be taking some time to do a little trout fishing in one of VT/NY's great trout streams: the Batten Kill.
Peace,
Cheesey-boy
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