[size=4]I’ve been making Gouda from raw goat milk for 3 years without trouble.  Now I have had several Goudas fail in the same way.  When I add rennet tiny flecks or grains appear in the milk.  The curd begins to set normally, but with a slightly rough appearance; then, before a clean break is possible, the curd sinks to the bottom of the pot.  When I try to cut it it dissolves into ragged flakes or chunks instead of staying in solid cubes.  If I drain the cheese at this point I get something chewy and stretchy that works beautifully in lasagna, but I would really like some solid Goudas. 

I think the problem may be related to acidity. I understand that the acidity of goat milk tends to change from freshening to late milking, and also from grass feeding to hay feeding.  One of our goats freshened this spring, the other hasn’t kidded since 2006 (we’re working on that, too…) After we moved the goats in and started feeding hay and grain only we started having Gouda failures.  I had been working from a Gouda recipe that called for 1/4 t powdered DVI mesophilic culture for 2 gallons of milk.  When I reduced this to 1/8 t I had one successful Gouda, but the next one failed again.  1/8 t in 2 gal is the same proportion I use for Colby and Cheddar, which are coming out fine.  The only other difference I can think of at this early stage of cheesemaking is that in our Gouda recipes the rennet is added right after the culture instead of after an hour or so of ripening.

Has anyone else had this problem? Would it work to use even less culture? to wait before adding rennet? anything else you can think of?

Sounds like A milk problem, have you kept notes as to all the things you have done. The only other thing possible is the rennet going off.

If you are having success with other cheeses I doubt the rennet is bad.  I was thinking it might be your culture.  How old is it and how has it been stored?  Also, could it be that there is not sufficient acid rather than it being too acidic?  Got any pH strips?

My initial inclination is to recommend trying your same recipe….using the same cultures and rennet with store bought cow milk. If you have the same results then it appears your problem lies with either the cultures, the recipe itself or the rennet. Since you have had previous success with this recipe I think that rules this out as the source of your problem.
If the cow milk batch turns out good then I think you are right on the money in questioning the acidity of your fresh milk, due to whatever causes.
One question I have is the type of rennet you are using. I have used junket rennet tablets once or twice and always got an inferior curd set. Once I started using liquid vegetable rennet I’ve never had a single problem in getting a fantastic curd.
Let us know what you finally figure out (and believe me, you will figure out the problem, eventually).
Dave

Junket is designed for puddings

Yes, the only time I used Junket was with my first two or three attempts at making cheese. I had the vegetable rennet ordered but I couldn’t wait to get started. Junket was availabe at our local supermarket so it did get me up and running the same night I decided to give it a try. I used buttermilk as a starter and the rest is history.
The cheese that I made using Junket, did turn out…...it just wasn’t a good quality curd. Even though the curd was imperfect, I’ll never forget that feeling of absolute amazement when I realized the milk had actually set up in the pan.
Dave

LOL, I almost went that way when I first started, was looking around but found out Junket has not been available in Canada for some time, SO I had to wait for my order. Patience is a vertu LOL

Thanks for the suggestions. I suspect high rather than low acidity because this problem is showing up with Gouda, which has the highest proportion of culture to milk, and reducing the amount of culture helped somewhat, and I’ve read that culture increases acidity.  I don’t have pH strips but may need to get them.  Is the desirable pH range for Gouda different from Cheddar and Colby? I don’t tend to think the culture has gone bad because (1 it’s recently bought, dry, and stored in my freezer and (2 that culture seems to be working fine for Colby and Cheddar. I’m using liquid vegetable rennet.
Haven’t tried a cow cheese yet.

pH 5,2 for Gouda when brining PH 5.5-5.9 for cheddar (still checking on the cheddar value)

Neil - 05 December 2008 06:06 PM

pH 5,2 for Gouda when brining PH 5.5-5.9 for cheddar (still checking on the cheddar value)

Regarding Cheddar values i have posted the table before, for raw and past milk

cheddar should reach 5.1 - 5.2 after two days (when waxing)

JoannaCW, i know what is ur problem

u r using raw milk, and raw milk doesn’t require an hour after adding the culture (before rennet)
people who use past milk needs to do so, raw milk has its lactic acid bacteria which accelerate the acidification process…

use less culture (i think u bought new culture which is more powerful so the results changed with u)

so add rennet after ten minutes of adding culture maximum.
again ur problem is as u said, over acidity issue… as ur culture is very active and u r using raw milk (no need to wait for culture as u have a LIVE milk (raw))

regards

Thank you for the thoughtful explanation.  Using less culture does help me sometimes.  But what puzzles me about your advice is that I’m not experiencing any difficulty with the cheese recipes that call for adding culture an hour ahead of rennet. My Gouda recipe calls for adding rennet immediately after culture, and when I do that the milk becomes grainy and the curd sinks as it sets.

JoannaCW - 13 December 2008 04:13 PM

Thank you for the thoughtful explanation.  Using less culture does help me sometimes.  But what puzzles me about your advice is that I’m not experiencing any difficulty with the cheese recipes that call for adding culture an hour ahead of rennet. My Gouda recipe calls for adding rennet immediately after culture, and when I do that the milk becomes grainy and the curd sinks as it sets.

What do u mean by the curds sinks ? u mean before u cut them? if yes, this means it is acid issue

raw milk does not require time between adding culture and rennet, pasteurized milk needs that time

try to use less culture and wait only ten mins, then add rennet, and cut the curd as soon as u get clean break

by the way how much do u wait between rennet and cutting?

Yes, the curd sinks before I cut it.  I wait an hour or a little more between rennet and cutting for gouda when it works; when it doesn’t work well the curd sinks before a clean break is possible.  Is waiting ten mins apt to be better than adding rennet directly after culture? As I said before, I don’t have trouble with sinking curd in recipes where I leave an hour between culture and rennet, but I do have trouble with the gouda recipe which does not call for a delay.

strange

Are u sure about your culture

Joanna….
Would you care to post the Gouda recipe you use? This is a cheese that has always turned out perfectly when I’ve made it so I am curious to see the process according to your own recipe.
Maybe we can get a solution to this problem narrowed down.
Dave