Yesterday, I made a batch of Gouda using the recipe on the Cheese Wiki. It is in the brine now, and looks great. I got a very good yield. I made a small batch of Ricotta from the whey.

After brining, I’ll keep in the basement for 3 weeks, wiping it with a salty cloth daily. The basement is about 55°F this time of year. Then I’ll wax it and see how long I can go before eating it.

Sounds good, how much ricotta did you get? Was yours bitter to taste? When I made a batch from the Stiton whey it had a slight bitter edge.

Cheers
Andrew

I got about 1-1/2 cups of ricotta. I did not supplement the whey with whole milk to increase the yield, which is possible and I’ve had success. Once drained I added a little salt and stirred it around. No, it does not taste bitter.

I’ve never attempted ricotta from a cheese that has blue mold in it. Maybe that gave it the bitter flavor?

I found certain namebrands to be bitter aftertaste, so u might want to change brands and see what happens. other then that Im told it could be the Rennet, too much or too old. However in my case it was the name brand, have not had the problem since I switched.

Waxed the Gouda today.

Photo of waxed Gouda.

I have a bad feeling…

Tonight, I went down to the cellar to store some cheeses that I had vacuum packed, and I turned the Gouda for the first time in a month or more. It is waxed, but when I picked it up it felt all squishy and I could see liquid swishing around under the (yellow) wax. I’ll cut into it in the next day or two, but I have a really bad feeling…

I had the same thing happen with my cheddar I waxed, when I cut the cheese all this liquid was trapped between the wax and the cheese, the cheese is VERY dry and tart to taste. I have no idea what happened.
Please let us know what you think about yours Rick.

Cheers
Andrew

Still trying to get a working batch myself, no luck so far, all have gone pear shape :(