The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1884-11-22
THE INFLUENCE OF OXYGEN
Its Action in Milk Produces a Heightened
Flavor on Butter.

Its Action in Milk Produces a Heightened
Flavor on Butter.
That the heightened flavor of butter is
due to the action of oxygen upon the
milk fats is inferred from the different
effects which follow when cream is
raised in an atmosphere of pure oxygen
gas and when it is raised with oxygen
partly or entirely excluded. If you
take three tight glass vessels and fill
each alike half full of warm, new milk,
and fill the half in one vessel above the
milk with common air, the second with
oxygen gas and the half of the third
with carbonic acid gas, and seal them
all air tight and let them stand at
temperature of about sixty degrees for
forty hours, at the end of that time it
will be found that the cream has raised
in each alike and that the milk in each
has reached the same degree of acidity,
but in several other respects they will
differ. Upon opening the vessel with
air above the milk and examining the
air, it will be found that the
oxygen has all been exhausted
and its place filled with carbonic
acid gas, mingled with an intensi-
fed smell of new milk, but somewhat
modified. Upon examining the milk
the same odor is found all through it.
but is most concentrated and offensive
in the cream. Among cheese factory
men this augmented smell of new milk
has given rise to technical terms. The
strong smell is called ''animal odor"
and the milk containing it ''tainted
milk" though it has made no progress
toward putrefaction. Upon churning
the cream to butter it requires long
time, and the butter tastes strongly Of
the odor and is greasy in appearance
ana snort-lived. When considerable
quantity of milk thus treated is dis
titled, there appears in little drops upon
the condensations of vapor in the con-
denser small quantity of oil very
limpid and inodorous at thirty-five de-
grees, but which, upon raising the tenn
perature little, flies off quickly with a
very strong smell of new milk-so in
tense as to suggest foul stable. Upon
opening the vessel having oxygen over
the milk nothing of this odor appears.
1t is clean smelling and the cream tastes
delicious, and the milk, though sour,
has clean and lively taste. The butter
churns quickly and has a full, rich
taste, resembling cocoanut and is in all
respects fancy, and keeps remarkably
well-a perfect contrast compared with
the other. Upon opening the vessel
with carbonic acid gas over the milk,
little or no change is apparent, except
fhn hn
the others. There is no appreciate
loss or gain in flavor or odor. 1t has
the usual taste of new sweet cream and
the same protracted labor is necessary
to churn it. The flavor is not quite
equal to butter from sweet cream which
has stood in the open air, so that the
new-milk odor could escape, and like
the first keeps poorly. A comparison of
these results makes it apparent that oxy-
gen intensifies the flavor of the oils ON
which the taste peculiar to fine butter
depends, and consumes the offensive
milk odor. 1t appears also that when
there is no oxygen touching the milk
there is no increase of butter flavor, or
milk odor, and that little oxygen. like
a little learning, is dangerous thing,
especially in confinement, as it only
serves to increase an offensive odor
which Injuries the butter, because it can
not escape. The results here observed
afford point to butter-makers, who
desire to make the finest product, to
admit oxygen freely to their milk
while the cream is rising, and
they confirm the propriety of the
| practice pursued by fancy makers gen.
orally of spreading their milk thinly in
pure dry air at moderate temperature.
In accordance with the general rule
that the affinity between oxygen and
carbon increases and diminishes with
the rise and fall of temperature, we find
the development of butter flavor to be
accelerated by raising the temperature
of milk and retarded by cooling it while
the cream is rising. New milk heated
to lao degrees and cooled at once, and
the cream separated as quickly as pos.
sible and churned while new and sweet
| is found to have acquired all the flavor
of a ten-days' exposure at sixty degrees
and churns as easily and keeps tht
longer of the two. But such a method
of separating cream is impracticablt
because it is expensive, and more
moderate elevation interferes with the
separation of cream by premature sour.
ing, while lowerer the temperature
though it retards the development o.
flavor, favors both the preservation o.
the milk and cheap and rapid Dreaming
It is held by some that all the increase
of delicate flavor which milk fats 40
quire in the process of butter-makina
above what they possess when they came
from the udder - due.to souring an
decomposition. -0sw Fssncisoo Garss
ioIs