Sentinel of the valley. [volume] (Woodstock, Va) 1841-1848, 1843-11-16

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EXPERIMENTS AND OBSERVATIONS IN
THE PRODUCTION oF
BUTTER.

BUTTER.
AT a late meeting of the Highland
Agricultural Society of Scotland, a pa
per entitled "Experiments and Obser-
vations ON the Production of Butter,o
by Professor Trail, was read by the
author. These experiments were made
in connection with the late DIR. Ger
rard, of Liverpool, who had paid much
attention to the subject, and assistance
was occasionally given by DR.. Bost-
wick, now in London. The expert
mentors had a dairy of four cows at
their disposal; but after numerous pre-
hmlnary trials, they found that the nu-
merlcal results, on the quantity of but
ter obtained, were most uniform and
satisfactory when each experiment was
made ON few pints only. The pro-
cess.could thus be carried on in glass
vessels, which enabled them to observe
the progress of the operation, to collect
the produce carefully and use a more
delicate balance to ascertain the weight
OF the butter obtained. This likewise
enabled them to make the comparative
experiments on the same milk on the
same day, point regarded as of essen
tlal Importance, as the richness, even
OF the same cows milk, is liable to va
~ considerably from day to day, accor-
ding to the nature of her food, her
health, and possibly, too, according to
the state OF the weather. The time
which had elapsed since the last calv-
ing was also found to have much infu-
ence on the quantity of butter. The
quantity of butter was smallest, and
the proportion Of cheesy matter great
est, just after calving; and generally
speaking the milking of those COWS
yielding the least quantity was richest
IN butteraceous matter.
One of the principal objects in view
was to ascertain the comparative ad.
vantage of chufning:
l. Sweet cream alone.
2. Sweet milk and cream together.
8. Sour cream or that slightly acid.
4. Sour milk and cream together.
D. Scalded cream, or what is called
clotted cream, as practised in Devon
shire.
The principal results Of the expert
ments are the following:
l. That the addition of some cold
water during churning, facilitates the
process, or the separation of the butter,
especially when the cream is thick and
the weather hot.
2. The cream alone is more easily
churned than a mixture of cream and
milk.
3. The butter produced from sweet
cream has the finest flavor, when fresh,
and appears to keep longest without
becoming rancid; but that the butter
milk SO obtained is poor and small in
quantity.
A. That scalding the cream, accor-
ding to the Devonshire method, Yields
the greatest quantity of butter, which,
II intended for immediate use, is agree
able to the palate, and readily saleable:
but if intended to be sailed. is more
liable to acquire by keeping, a rancid
flavor.
The process Of scalding is trouble.
some, and the milk, after the removal
OF the cream, is poor, and often would
be unsaleable from the taste it had ac-
quired from the heating.
5. That churning the milk and cream
together, after they had become slight
ly acid, seems to be the most econom-
zeal process on the whole; because it
yields large quantity of excellent but.
ter, and the buttermilk is of good quail
lty, point Of some importance where
buttermilk is largely used as an article
OF diet, as it's in Lancashire.
6. That the keeping of butter in a
sound state, appears 10 depend on its
being obtained as free from uncombin-
ed albumen or caseine and water. as #
can be, by means of washing and aoor-
hang when taken from the churn.
The author mentioned the interesting
fact that in the course of his expert =
ments, he found when sweet milk and
cream were churned together, and tho,
cold water was added, after an hour and
a half, and then after three hours cbur-
ming, not particle of butter was obtai-
ned.
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