hmm, didn’t seem like it to me based on the description in the recipe i’m using (from Ricki Carroll’s Home Cheesemaking book), or on some other photos of blues i’ve seen in online recipes (such as
it also smells like the cheese i used as the innoculant.
it seems unlikely that it would have picked up something quite so blue, instead of say, pink or orange. other opinions?
I would say it’s alright, looks very similar to mine at that age.
One thing I did note. The Blue is controlled by temperature, humidity to a lesser degree. I had mine a bit too cold in the cave, when I brought it out it bloomed even stronger.
Stick with it, it’ll be great.
RIP Puddle o’ Blue- we hardly knew ye.
Well, I had my wheel sitting upright to age, and it became misshapen because I didn’t turn it often enough. That, coupled with the fact that I was aging it at perhaps 20% higher temp than I should have, caused it to just fall over/apart. I opened the cooler about three days ago to find someone had evidently run over it with a car. Since it didn’t smell bad, I tasted it and it wasn’t putrid s I expected; just tasted TOO blue, too moldy. There were runny parts and solid parts- interesting, though unintended. I’ll start over again when I get the thermostat working in the camper fridge.
Keep posting progress of the other cheeses- I’m really enjoying them!
Bobbie
See, now if that were me I’d salvage that soft stuff and liven up a cracker or two. It has the same creamy colour as the head on a glass of stout so I’d say the gods are trying to tell you something ... ;o)
Interesting! I have the completely opposite effects. My cave is too cold and dry, so my Stilton is relatively firmer and the blue hasn’t developed as strong as ‘Pie’s’ version. Now it’s at room temperature the blue has developed along with the taste which is terrific.
It’s possible we stick to the suggested ageing information too firmly, experimenting seems to open more possibilities for improvement.
Yeah, I like the “eat it anyway” idea, and I really like runny cheeses so was kind of excited about the puddle that some of it turned into. I tried it hoping it would be surprisingly good, but it just wasn’t. I was prepared to be challenged too, but it sort of tasted like dirt mold. I’m not sure mixing it with something would have helped.
Bobbie
At one month. The blue is definitely expanding (see week 3 pic) albeit slowly. I have upped my fridge temp. a little to see if I can get complete coverage by next weekend. Then I intend to wrap them tightly in tin foil for another month.
If you look closely you can see where I have poked them with sterile bamboo skewer to allow a little air inside.
Their looking very good. Remember, u dont have to have a thick skin of blue for it to be blue cheese. The mold will spread even if u dont see it.
I always add culture at the beginning to ensure complete infusion, instead of spraying on top.
Classic too high a ripening temp. Im with EldonBlue I would have experimented by mixing it with something like salsa and bread
I’m impressed with those of you who can make a problem cheese into something edible.
I on the other hand simply cannot stand keeping a cheese that is not up to the standards that I had hoped for.
In the past I have either tossed, or given away several cheeses, once I realized that my Ph had dropped too low, or some other problem had happened. In my, (probably twisted sort of thinking), I figure that out of sight, out of mind is better.
I’ve found that each time I see a cheese with a problem it does nothing but tick me off. On the other hand, if I get rid of a problem cheese I can forget about the failure and move on to the next batch.
As of right now, I’m still not making cheese but I hope to start up again within the next few weeks. In the meantime I’ve opened a few cheeses that have aged, (parmesan and gouda), and I’m pretty happy with the results.
I can’t wait to get back to it but right now my dad is my priority. Hopefully within the next few weeks things will be stable enough so that I can take a Saturday or Sunday off.
Hope everyone is doing well and I’ll get back as soon as I can.
