The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1881-07-07
Requisites for Making Good Cheese.

To make cheese of good keeping
quality and of fine flavor, and such as
suits the tastes of consumers in En-
gland, and to a large extent in this
country, it is essential that acidity be
developed in the curds before sailing
and putting to press.
During the last quarter of a century
the tastes of English speaking people
have changed materially in regard to
the flavor of cheese. Years ago, a very
pronounced sharp flavor was thought to
be perfection in cheese, and many pre-
ferred it so sharp that it would almost
take the skin off the tongue while eat
ing it. Nor was cheese Objectionable
that was tainted, or what we call "off
flavor" many preferring kind of taint
like Undergraduates, of which the
Germans are so fond. This kind of
cheese, about twenty-five years ago,
was very common, and the general
practice then was to make on the sweet
curd plan. In those days the makers
took the greatest care to keep the whey
and curds sweet during the process of
cheese-making, and any development
of ucidfty was considered great injury
and something to be carefully avoided
But gradually the tastes of English
speaking people have changed SO that
now a clean, nutty, rich, full flavor is
required, while anything strong, harsh
and tainted in the taste proves very OBJ
iectionable.
Now, in order to get this desirable
flavor, it is important that the milk
sugar be changed into Tactic acid, and
in this state separated from the curds
in the whey; for if any considerable
quantity is retained in curds as on the
non acid or sweet curd plan, it induces
undue fermentation in the cheese on the
shelf; hence noxious gases are evolved,
tainting the cheese, and then follows
more or less rapid decomposition, and
we get cheese of bad flavor and short
lived. having no keeping qualities. The
non-acid or sweet curd system, which
some theorists have attempted to intro
duce, has been very pernicious in its in
fluence on the quality and flavor of
American cheese, wherever it has been
tried and adopted. 1t seeks to over
throw the progress in cheese making
during the last twenty years and to re-
turn again to the old way of cheese
manufacture, with its sharp, tainted
and sinking product. The "sweet
curIls" " produced has no long keeping
qualities-it must be eaten when from
thirty to forty days old Gf sharp
tainted flavor is to be avoided) for it is
then in its best estate. But cheese
properly made on the acid plan will
keep from one to two years and yet be
StCeet, mild and ntttty in flavor.
But the use of acid can be abused, for
when the curds are allowed to lie in the
sour whey for a long time, it is often
very injurious, causing a dry, hard,
weak favored cheese. The better way
in manufacturing is to draw the whey
early, or on the near approach to acidi-
ty and then let the proper degree of
change or acid develop in the curds
while in the vat or exposed to the at
mosphere.
There has been a great deal of nom
sense written about making cheese on
the "non-acid plan" and then " oxid-
izing the curds" until they have "a
cheesey smelr'-just as if this was some
new system and wonderful discovery.
Put in plain language that every one
can understand, this means making
cheese on the acid pLdn-oXidation is
nothing more than exposing the curds
to the atmosphere and the " cheesey
smelr' is developing acidity until the
curds give of that peculiar odor which
| Is alWdNS Inc VI
| ity, and never occurs ut this stage of
| the process from anv other cause. Hence
we say if fine flavor and long keeping
qualities are sought for in cheese it is
essential that acid be developed in the
curds before sailing. The act of sailing
checks further progress in this direc-
ton, and the result is we get that sweet,
nutty llavor so much sought after by the
/ lovers Of pOO1 cheese
The feeding of whey to cows is not a
practice to be recommended. 1t has a
tendency to sour and decompose the
milk more rapidly than it should, and
besides it often gives to milk bad
flavor which is carried to the products
made from it. About the time that the
factory system began to be established
many dairymen inaugurated the plan ol
feeding whey to their COWS, but ''whey'
fed milk" was found to give great
deal of trouble to cheese makers, and
to produce an Off flavor to cheese, sc
the feeding of whey soon dropped ou
of practice in the best dairy districts
and no progressive dairyman can now
be found who will recommend it. W.
say to our correspondent, if he want:
to produce good, sound, fine-llavoreC
milk avoid feeding whey to his COWS
clean, fresh running water and good
sweet food are important elements fol
making sound and fine- Favored milk
american DdirymaR,
Not MANY tourists 90 to shed tear