I’m resurrecting this thread because the Swiss is now mature. I tried it last night. Yes, it has holes, albeit small ones. It has a strong taste, probably due to the goat milk I used. There’s a definite Swiss taste, but the wheel is very hard and dry. I know Swiss is usually a dry cheese, but this is really dry. It may be due to the seepage of butterfat earlier on. Also, its a small wheel - only a two Gallon batch - which isn’t real good either. I’m thinking that I need to do a larger batch, 3 or 4 gal. Then, after the 3 weeks at room temp and a few more in the cave, I think I’ll wax it to prevent too much moisture loss. Any other suggestions? And has anyone had a really “successful” Swiss?
Rich,
My swiss is in it’s early stages right now….still in the cave until later today. I will say that by making a three gallon wheel I came out with the best round of cheese that I’ve seen yet. It is 6” in diameter and has a height of 3-1/2”.
At this point I have it in the cave at 66 degrees and 99% humidity. I know that’s a little high but I do not want this wheel drying out. My kitchen stays right at 70 degrees but the humidity is lower than recommended. I’m wondering if I should just leave it where it’s at and see if it begins to swell.
Another option would be to keep it in a tupperware container and see what type of humidity level I get from this. I’m so excited about this cheese since it’s my first swiss attempt that looks like it might have a chance of success.
Even if this one doesn’t work I’ve got plenty of proponic shermanii to keep trying. I bought one package from The Dairy Connection and it has 8 tsp. per package. Since you only use an 1/8 to 1/4 tsp. per recipe that should last a long long time.
I’ll let you know in another 2 or 3 months how it tastes, along with updates on the swelling and aging process. I also plan on waxing this cheese once the swelling state is over.
Thanks for the update.
Dave
If u have it in the Tupperware, make sure it gets air.
And yes as we have talked, the small batches dry out real quick, not big enough to insulate itself. Good luck on your Swiss, I have had no luck so far.
Yeah, the smaller wheels don’t seem to even look like a whole lot of cheese anymore. I’ve been making 4 gal. batches lately and I like it a lot better. Seems like Nabil encouraged us to go with bigger batches.
Yeah, the smaller wheels don’t seem to even look like a whole lot of cheese anymore. I’ve been making 4 gal. batches lately and I like it a lot better. Seems like Nabil encouraged us to go with bigger batches.
i make mine out of 39L (10 gallons) of raw milk, so it can hold it self, and produce as small as smallest swiss cheese u get with a good eye forming results..
good luck, swiss cheese is really hard to make, and when u master it, u will be on the top level of cheese home makers
in this forum no one YET manage to get a proper batch (i managed to get only 60% of success with this cheese, and i am determine to do it but it needs a lot of tries) so be patient and study its parameter very good.
Nabil, I would love to see your cheese making operation. You obviously have some big equipment. I assume you do a water bath to heat your milk, so for a 10 gal. batch you need some humongous pots. I only have a 5 gal. stainless steel pot which I heat in the sink; but I’m maxed out in capacity.
I make a 2 gallon batch of caraway Swiss once or twice per year. And, it always dries out more than I’d like. The eye formation is always there, but the eyes are quite small—which is expected given the volume of cheese. The flavor is great, especially if I eat it “young”. As it ages, it improves in flavor, but also dries out to the point where the edible yield is quite small. So, I would like to find a way to keep it from drying out too much and have had no success, or I need to go to larger batches. I think I have a pot that would give me 4 gallons if I use direct heat.
One of my thoughts on home cheese making is this: Since we are making much smaller batches we need to eat the cheese earlier than normal.
One of my most well liked cheeses is Gouda.
Every cheese loving person that has tasted it says it’s the best cheese they have ever eaten. Now even though most sites recommend aging Gouda for several months, I have cracked them as early as two weeks after making and the same flavor is there as the ones that I’ve cracked at 4 months.
Everytime I’ve tried taking a cheese to the recommended aging time the texture has suffered. With the Gouda it becomes a tad bit more flavorful yet the texture is not as soft and creamy as I prefer.
Likewise the Cheddars I’ve tried long term aging on have gotten really sharp but the texture is overly dry and crumbly.
As for my previous attempts at swiss…..Basically they became hard with a very large rind within a couple of months time. The cheese lost it’s elasticity early on and was not, in my opinion a good cheese.
My current attempt at a swiss seems to be going well.
It is a three gallon batch with a nice deep, 6” wheel.
There is a LOT of elasticity in this wheel and it has begun to swell, although very slightly. I’m keeping it at 72 degrees and 98% humidity to try to keep it from drying out.
I’m going to give it a two to three week sweating period and then will move it to the cave for about a month. After that I’m going to crack it open and see if it has a nice smooth texture like swiss should have. If the flavor is not there I will simply try aging my next one a little bit longer and so on and so forth until I achieve the right balance between taste and texture.
It is my opinion that commercial cheese makers are able to age their cheese longer because of the size of wheels they make. Currently the biggest wheel I’ve turned out is a 3 gallon one.
It makes sense to me that a 2 or 3 pound wheel cannot age as long as a 100 lb. wheel or the texture will suffer and honestly this is exactly what I’ve found in trying to age my cheeses for longer periods of time.
It also seems that when I eat my cheeses young, they still have a very nice flavor and seem to be more true to their commercial counterparts.
Now this of course might not work for, say a bleu (I’m a total beginner at making these) but I will definately be experimenting with my Stilton if things don’t turn out the way I want it to.
Although cheesemaking is a science, there is also a lot of learning through trial and error. What works for me, might not work for you and vice versa. I think the key is in finding what does work on your particular scale and being willing to adjust along the way.
Just my two cents (and I’ll let you all know if my swiss experiment is a success or failure).
Dave
Dave, I think I’m with you on the shorter aging times. Especially with non-waxed cheeses. They certainly can’t mature properly if they are excessively dry. That will drastically effect the bacterial action required. Besides, it was a real bummer to wait 4 months only to have a dried out cheese as my reward. I’m not sure when I’ll do another Swiss - sometime this Winter for sure - but it will be a 4 gal. cheese, and I’ll only age it 1 month beyond the eye formation stage. Now, if we could just get some larger eyes it would be aesthetically more pleasing.
Atmosphere is everything, thats why some of the best cheeses are in natural “caves”, constant temp and humidity.
Tomorrow doing a 4gal brie. feel new at it again since havent done a cheese since spring, now its below 0 every night.
Rich..
At least you did get some eyes in your swiss. My last two attempts were totally blind so I can’t even have that satisfaction. Again, I think that eye formation is relative to the size of the wheel. I’m not expecting much formation in my 3 gallon wheel but right now I will settle for any at all.
I have been encouraged by Nabil’s post concerning larger batches, using direct heat. I’ve always been afraid of using direct heat but he has made me think that it’s doable. Over direct heat I can do up to an 8 gallon wheel in a very large blue enameled pot, I have.
As for non-waxed cheeses…..
I forgot to mention earlier that I do plan on waxing this swiss for the 1 month aging period (after eye formation). I know you aren’t supposed to wax a swiss but again, I think you have to be willing to improvise and adjust according to your particular situation.
Hopefully my plan will work out and I will have a tasty swiss that I can be proud of. If it comes even close to working out I will be trying another with at least 5 gallons of milk and mabye even up to 8. Man, I get a little jittery just thinking about it.
I guess I’ll also have to make a new mold out of an 8” PVC thin wall cap. I currently use a 6” (and have for three years) and it handles a 3 gallon swiss curd perfectly.
I know some of you have questions about using PVC for cheese molds but the Wisconsin cheese association does approve PVC for home cheese making but suggests checking with the FDA for using PVC in commercial applications.
Regardless of success or failure, I do love this hobby. A failure is simply an opportunity to gain further knowledge (except for my blue…that one HAS to succeed).
I make a 2 gallon batch of caraway Swiss once or twice per year. And, it always dries out more than I’d like. The eye formation is always there, but the eyes are quite small—which is expected given the volume of cheese. The flavor is great, especially if I eat it “young”. As it ages, it improves in flavor, but also dries out to the point where the edible yield is quite small. So, I would like to find a way to keep it from drying out too much and have had no success, or I need to go to larger batches. I think I have a pot that would give me 4 gallons if I use direct heat.
