like an elongated figure of 8. These cells multiply by splitting in
two at the constricted part, forming two individuals. A gelatinous
layer surrounds each cell when young, and also divides and envelopes
the new individuals. This, however, disappears with age, leaving the
cell naked. The action of this organism is to resolve any milk sugar
that may be present into alcohol, acetic acid, and carbonic acid,
and as this latter is a gas, it forms a number of small bubbles in
the cheese. Gruyère is a cooked cheese; for in order to hasten the
elimination of the whey, and enable the curd to be pressed in the
mould as quickly as possible, the curd is heated slowly, and with
constant stirring, to about 120° F. This requires considerable care,
for if the heating be too rapid, the grains formed are large, and
in the press flatten out and adhere to one another, and so clothe
the cheese with an impenetrable layer, through which the whey is
unable to escape. On the other hand, an undercooked curd is liable
to retain an excess of whey; and the evil of this is that too much
gas is given off by the fermentation of the sugar, and consequently,
instead of bubbles, long channels appear in the cheese, which
depreciate the value of the product. Again, as the ferment is killed
at a temperature very near 120° F. (varying a little with the acidity
or alkalinity of the curd), it is very possible to destroy it by
overheating, and then the cheese becomes dry, is difficult to mature,
and is said to be “dead.” Under any circumstances the ripening of
Gruyère cheese is a very slow process.
In Duclaux’s own district of Cantal, a soft, quickly maturing,
uncooked cheese is made, which has the disadvantage of slowly
depreciating after ripening, owing to the large quantity of moisture
it contains. The practice is to curdle the milk rapidly, and then,
while the curd still retains a considerable amount of whey, to allow
it to ferment till all the milk sugar has disappeared. On pressing
the mass, there is squeezed out a certain amount of liquid and much
ferment; but the remainder, equivalent to half the weight of the
cheese, is retained, owing to a curious change in the properties
of the curd. So obstinately is this held, that, with additional
pressure, fat is forced out in preference to water. Duclaux finds,
however, that with cheese containing less fat--say, half skimmed
and half raw milk--more liquid can be extracted, and thus a
better-keeping cheese obtained. As the flavour and odour are derived
almost entirely from the alteration products of the casein, the
main characteristics of the Cantal cheese are not altered by this
modification, and he consequently recommends its adoption.
The most praiseworthy part of Duclaux’s investigations--that on the
life history of these organisms, and the isolation and investigation
of the diastases secreted by them--is of too scientific a nature
to be reproduced here. We may mention, however, that Manelli and
Mussi, in their researches on the maturing of Parmesan cheese, have
independently come to much the same conclusion as those given above;
so there is every reason to consider that we possess now a correct
explanation of the phenomena of cheese ripening.
Apart from the interest attached to the explanation of an every-day
process, researches such as these are sure in the end to lead to
results of direct practical utility. Little by little we are getting
to understand that no process of fermentation or putrefaction can be
truly called “spontaneous.” They are as much the result of sowing
as a thistle that turns up in a field where it was not purposely
planted; and just as we can keep our agricultural crops in order by
due attention, so crops of ferments can be controlled, the valuable
ones being cultivated, and the pernicious weeds sterilised. Methods
are known to the vinegar maker by which he can rear, when he needs
it, unmixed crops of _Mycoderma aceti_ to ferment his liquors; and
the high-class brewer already uses the microscope to ascertain the
healthiness of his yeast plant and its freedom from bacteria. May
not even cheesemaking, then, be raised from an empirical art into
a science, and each cheese factory of the future devote itself
knowingly to the cultivation of its own appropriate fungus, learning
its likes and its dislikes, and the enemies that have to be contended
with? Even the mould sowing of the Roquefort peasants might be
improved upon, and pure crops of ferment be raised to inoculate our
cheeses. Granted that even then our finest cheeses would not be made
better, yet the possibility of raising all cheese to the highest
standard of quality of which it is capable is surely sufficient to
claim for the scientific experimenter respect and encouragement.
In France there are a variety of cheeses which vary in consistence,
constitution, flavour, and ability to keep, and these differences
are rather owing to the process of manufacture than to the nature of
the soil or the peculiarity of climate. The various denominations
applied to them, too, indicate differences in manipulation rather
than any change in their matter. Nevertheless, we are far from
partaking of the opinion of those who deny that both sun and soil
have any influence; for as with wine and cider, so with butter and
cheese, the pasture has a marked action upon aroma and quality. If we
consider the general manner or process of manufacture, we find that
it comprehends five distinct operations, which in France are called:
1st, _coagulation du lait_, or the formation of the curd; 2nd,
_rompage_, or breaking up of the curd; 3rd, _égouttage_, or drainage,
which is accompanied in some cases by _pressage_ or pressing; 4th,
_salaison_, or salting; and 5th, _fermentation_, or maturing of the
cheese. It is in the various methods, many of which differ very
little from each other, and in all of which these operations are in
force, but carried out under different conditions, that it is found
possible to make 40 or more varieties of cheese, which are divided
into 4 categories; 1st, fresh soft cheese; 2nd, salt ditto ditto;
3rd, firm or medium-pressed ditto; 4th, cured cheese, more or less
hard and pressed.
In the first category we have the Neufchâtel, the manufacture of
which is extensive and profitable in the district of Bray; the Brie,
the Pont l’Evêque, and the Camembert may be mentioned as examples
of the second; Roquefort and Dutch of the third; and Gruyère and
Parmesan of the fourth.
There are defects to which even the best cheeses are commonly
subject--defects, of the causes of which the professed cheese-makers
themselves do not always give consistent accounts. Every good cheese
should be of uniformly smooth surface, and perfectly firm; of colour
unvarying throughout the whole surface, save only where the marks of
age, necessary to certain kinds, appear. Softness and soapiness of
texture; cracks, attributed by some to the action of lime on pasture,
by others to the employment of too strong a draught in the process
of drying; and holes, caused by “heaving” or “sweating,” are patent
signs of imperfection which should warn the most careless purchaser
against the cheese in which any of them are found. “Marbling,” the
worst of all faults, is a mottled appearance of the surface, somewhat
resembling the veining of marble. It is due to one or more of the
following causes: not properly scalding the cheese; adding the
colouring (which should be put in before the rennet) after the cheese
has come; not properly squeezing out the whey. Wherever this occurs,
it imparts to the cheese an exceeding ill flavour--in fact, makes it
unfit to be eaten. It is especially dangerous in cheeses of the North
Wilts kind, where the surface is invisible to the purchaser. Rankness
of flavour, which can of course be guarded against by those who buy
their own cheese, is also to be met with in the best kinds. This has
been imputed to impurity of rennet; but, as it is frequently found in
the cheeses of Scotland, where it is pretended that the greatest care
is taken of the rennet, it may possibly also result from bad quality
of pasture. In the Scotch dairy farms it is said to be obviated by
pouring a very small quantity of saltpetre into the pail before
milking the cows.
Following are some remarks on the chief British cheeses, culled from
the _Field_.
Cheddar.--The manufacture of this, the king of cheeses, occupies a
large tract of country, its head-quarters being at and about Pennard,
a few miles from the cliffs of Cheddar in the Mendips. For richness
combined with delicacy of flavour, and, indeed, for every good
quality that may become a cheese, it is without a rival. None can
serve better its purpose at dinner. This cheese is made of circular
shape, of large surface, and considerable depth; its price about
13_d._ per lb. at a good cheesemonger’s. It is mostly white, but is
occasionally coloured red, for which purpose Nicholl’s “colouring” is
used. It is said to make no perceptible difference in the flavour.
Cheddar, to be in perfection, must be kept for at least 2 years
before being eaten, when it will not show any outward signs of decay.
It is said, that the facility of exportation given by railways at
present has caused much of this cheese to be moved before it is
properly ripe, thereby producing a considerable general deterioration
of its quality in the markets. Yet by taking a little pains, and by
selection of right places of purchase, the best of it may still be
obtained.
Cheshire.--This justly celebrated cheese, though for delicacy of
flavour inferior to Cheddar, was, and is still by many good judges,
held to be the best of English cheeses. In taste it is a good deal
stronger, not to say coarser, than Cheddar, but it is equally rich
in substance. Perhaps, owing to its strength, it may be considered
as better adapted for dinner than luncheon. It is of large size, and
circular in shape. Like Cheddar, it must be kept at least 2 years
before eating, and no cheese is more improved by age. It is for the
most part made in the county the name of which it bears, though,
of course, the general area of its distribution exceeds the limits
of that county, and very good specimens of it may be had at some
distance beyond the borders. Much of its excellence is, however, said
to be imparted by the peculiarity of the soil of Cheshire itself, and
by the salt springs with which that soil abounds. At least, wherever
such salt springs are most found, the cheese there produced has
always been deemed of superior quality. The price of the best quality
in London shops is mostly the same as that of Cheddar.
Cottenham.--Some say that it is a much superior cheese to Stilton. In
external appearance it closely resembles Stilton, and might easily
be mistaken for it. The interior, however, which is of a far richer
and creamier texture, is very different. The flavour is fuller,
though equally delicate; and although Cottenham, to be really good,
requires, like Stilton, to be kept until decay shows itself, yet it
is in itself not so insipid but that it may be eaten before that
decay is very fully developed. The veins with which it will then be
marked are of a brownish hue. It is about the same size as Stilton,
or perhaps a little larger, and its price ought to be about the same
as the price of that cheese.
Daventry.--A rare cheese of remarkably pleasant flavour, very
delicate of taste, and possibly rich of substance. It is of medium
size, flat and circular of shape, of whitish colour, and should be
marked when fit for eating with veins, somewhat after the manner of
Stilton, but of deeper green than is usual with that cheese.
Dorset (Double), or Blue Vinney.--This cheese is generally known
throughout a large tract of country, but is in fact a poor enough
cheese, and only adapted to make a tolerable luncheon off. It is
circular and flat, of white colour, mottled with a network of
blue veins; whence its name, though the etymology of the name has
disappeared in the popular spelling of it.
Dunlop.--This, the most famous--indeed, the only famous--Scotch
cheese, is made in the counties of Ayr, Renfrew, Lanark, and
Galloway, in various sizes from ¼ to ½ cwt. In texture and taste it
somewhat resembles double Gloucester, and, like it, is well adapted
for toasting.
Gloucester, Double and Single.--Double Gloucester is also a very rich
cheese, but with a certain poverty of flavour, by reason of which it
can hardly be recommended for use at dinner, although at luncheon
it may not be unacceptable. Its taste is peculiarly mild, and this,
combined with its waxy texture, which allows it to be cut into thin
slices without crumbling, admirably adapts it for toasting, for which
purpose it is, with hardly an exception, the best cheese we possess.
It is of circular shape, and generally weighs about 22 lb. The single
Gloucester is currently reported to be of the same substance and
richness as the double; but in fact, as a rule, is made of far poorer
materials, being composed of milk skimmed overnight, or partially
thereof; it is also of only about half the weight and thickness. It
is fit for nothing but toasting.
Leicester--commonly called in London shops _Derbyshire_--is chiefly
made in the county from which it takes it name; it is in shape flat
and circular, and very shallow, of moderate size, and coloured a
deepish red. It is a good second-rate cheese, and if any one shall
desire a serviceable article, whether for luncheon or dinner, very
equal in quality and agreeable of taste, let him try Leicester. The
price should be 9-10_d._ per lb.
North Wilts.--This, which derives its name from the county of its
birth, is a rich and nice little cheese, of a very delicate and
agreeable flavour. From the extreme mildness of its taste, it is far
fitter for the luncheon than for the dining-table. In shape it is
cylindrical, with a smooth hard rind, and weighs about 10-12 lb. It
is coloured red with arnatto. The price in London is 10-11_d._ per lb.
Stilton.--At Stilton, in Huntingdonshire, where the coaches of the
great north road were wont to stop for luncheon, this cheese was
first introduced to the public. Its sole connection with Stilton is
its name, the cheese itself having been made in the neighbourhood of
Melton Mowbray. Since then it has extended itself over most of the
rich lowlands of Leicestershire and a portion of Nottinghamshire. In
shape it is cylindrical, the outside covered with a whitish rind,
very thick and rough. The flavour of a good Stilton is exquisite,
though, perhaps rather cloying as compared with the finer sorts of
“plain” cheese. It is unfit to be eaten--indeed, is of a nauseous
insipidity--until pretty well covered with blue veins. This will
occur in about 2 years, and should be allowed to come on gradually
and naturally, by merely keeping the cheese moist enough not to
check the decay. Many artifices, however, are resorted to in order
to hasten its maturity, as by placing it in a damp but warm cellar;
sinking it, wrapped in brown paper, in a hotbed, &c. The practice
of pouring port wine into Stilton is condemned by some as at once
wasting good wine and spoiling good cheese. Stilton will be found
most acceptable both at luncheon and dinner. In size it averages 12
lb., and its price is from 1_s._ 6_d._ per lb. There is, however,
no cheese so unequal in quality, whether from accidents to which it
is liable during manufacture, or from whatever other cause, and the
utmost care must be taken in its purchase.
Subjoined is an account of the best known foreign cheeses, from the
same source.
Camembert.--This cheese, which is made in Brittany, is a kind of
cross between the “real” and “cream” cheese. It reminds one much of
the best privately made cream cheese of our own country, with a rich
and peculiar flavour superadded. It is of a soft and creamy texture,
of a yellowish white, flat and very shallow, with a dark brown rind,
very thick and soft. It may be confidently recommended as a real
delicacy, rather for the dinner than the luncheon-table. The price of
Camembert cheeses, which are o£ small size, is about 9-10_d._ each.
Cream Cheeses.--In this production the palm must be yielded by the
English to the foreign market. Our own cheeses of the kind, including
the best of private manufacture, are made to be eaten at once, and
will not bear keeping, by which process the Continental cheese, more
skilfully put together, is much improved.
The principal foreign cream cheeses are Stracchino (Milan), which
is a long way the best; Brie (Meaux), Marolles, and Pont l’Evêque,
all very good of their kind, and Neufchatel, which last is, of all,
the most commonly met with on this side of the Channel. Neufchatel,
frequently called “Bondon,” from being made of the shape and size
of the _bondon_ (Ang. “bung”) of a cask, is made at Neufchatel,
in Normandy. It is simply a white cream cheese, and when fresh,
extremely insipid--in fact, hardly equal to our own Yorkshire and
Bath cheeses. By keeping, however, until it becomes “ripe,” it
acquires a flavour by no means to be despised, though hardly on a
level with some of the cream cheeses already mentioned.
Crême de Brie has been alluded to as once the _crême de la crême_
of cheeses, and even now “running a good second” to Roquefort. La
Brie is situated near to Paris, in the Department of Seine et Marne,
with proximity, together with the difficulty of distant transport
and the fondness of the Parisians for the thing itself, causes the
most dainty to be almost entirely eaten in Paris. Imitations of it
are many, and, as a rule, as worthless as is the genuine article
valuable, for of all the French cheeses it is the most expensive by
reason of its not keeping sound beyond a few days, and the large
quantities in which it is partaken of at a meal. Brie is a soft,
creamy cheese, made in rounds of large size but of little thickness.
Dutch (Holland and Belgium).--This cheese is perhaps better known
in kitchens than in the upper regions. It has, however, many good
points, and is of by no means disagreeable flavour, though, owing
to the process of making, a little too salt for delicate taste.
It is also in general very safe, and very equal in quality. Being
extremely mild, it is hardly suited to the dinner table, but affords
an excellent luncheon. For domestic use it is eminently serviceable,
and will be found (which is a great merit) generally acceptable in
the kitchen. It is of a spherical oval shape, softish in texture, and
coloured red. Its cheapness is also a recommendation, as it costs
but 8_d._ or 9_d._ a lb. An imitation of this cheese is made in the
district of Calvados, Normandy.
Gorgonzola (North of Italy).--This is an excellent cheese, and one
that bears a close resemblance to Stilton. It has, however, so
strongly marked and distinct a character of its own, that it would be
injurious to institute a comparison between it and any other cheese.
In texture and marking it is not altogether unlike Stilton, but is of
deeper yellow, and the veins of a greener hue. It is equally good for
luncheon and dinner, having great delicacy combined with fulness of
flavour. Price about 1_s._ 5_d._ a lb.
Gruyère.--Gruyère is made in the Canton of Fribourg, and in the
Vosges, the Jura, and Ain. The best cheeses of this kind are selected
for exportation. Gruyère is a flat cheese of some 3 in. in depth,
of a pale yellow colour, and plain surface, marked sparsely with
large holes, which contain moisture. The rule laid down on the
“plain” cheeses of England as to uniformity of colour in the surface
of cheese holds good abroad as well as at home, but uniformity of
surface in foreign plain cheeses need not be so closely looked for.
In fact, the holes that abound in some of these cheeses constitute
neither blemish nor unsoundness. The odour of Gruyère is strongish,
but the taste mild and delicate. If anything, it is a little cloying.
It is a fair cheese, but cannot be called more than fair, for dinner;
but will serve very well for luncheon, though perhaps likely to pall
on the taste if eaten constantly at this meal. The wholesale price is
11_d._ a lb.
Parmesan (from the district in the North of Italy between Lodi and
Cremona) is a finer cheese than Gruyère. The cows from whose milk
it is made are kept in the house nearly all the year round, and fed
in summer on cut grass, in winter on hay. The process of making
both Gruyère and Parmesan is the same, but the quality of the milk
considerably differs. Parmesan is of great size, sometimes reaching
180 lb. and is perhaps, of all cheese imported from abroad, the most
useful “all round.” It is the only cheese that can be used grated for
soup or macaroni. It is the custom of a good many people to supply
grated Parmesan as a dinner cheese, but grated cheese, as compared
with whole, suffers a certain deterioration of flavour. However this
may be, avoid, if the cheese is served whole, the cutting of either
this or Gruyère into thin slices, as the manner of some is. Let the
cheese have fair play, and its full flavour, which it will not,
unless it be cut, like any other cheese, of a reasonable thickness.
Parmesan is of a yellowish-green hue, of firm and hard surface,
marked by small holes. The time for ripening it properly is about
3 years. When not wanted for use, it should be kept covered with a
cloth slightly steeped in sweet oil. The wholesale price is 1_s._
5_d._ a lb.
Port du Salut.--This cheese is hardly as well-known in England as are
the Roquefort and other French cheeses. It is, when fresh, a soft,
pasty, mild, most palatable cheese, generally made in round cakes of
5-8 lb. in weight, and stamped with a cross and words showing its
place of manufacture.
Roquefort, made in the department of Aveyron, in the south of
France, is not only the most highly priced and most highly prized
of the cheeses of that country, but a most formidable rival to any
of the best cheeses made on the continent, and even to our own more
celebrated “fancy” cheeses. It has been likened by some to Stilton;
but, beyond a certain similarity of surface texture, the two have not
much in common. They are, moreover, made of very different matter,
Roquefort being composed of sheep and goats’ milk intermixed. Its
peculiar excellence is said to be due to the natural qualities of
the cellars wherein it is placed for ripening, and partly also from
the manner of milking the sheep in making it. It should be kept
until considerable progress of decay has been made. It is of very
delicate though rather pungent flavour, and, if it lacks something
of the softness and mellowness of the Stilton, will be found equally
agreeable with it, at least at the dinner table. For luncheon Stilton
has the preference. Its wholesale price per lb. is 1_s._ 5_d._
Schabzieger.--This cheese is of spherical shape, of size somewhat
larger than a cricket ball, with a dark thick rind. Its colour is
yellow, with green veins. It is of a strong odour, and, unlike
Gruyère, of an equally strong and rank taste. There is no doubt of
its power to fulfil one purpose of cheese, the annihilation of the
taste of anything you may have previously eaten, and for this it will
be found to do good and useful service. It is a deservedly popular
delicacy. The price of each cheese is about 8_d._ See also p. 1002.
SUPPLEMENTARY LITERATURE.
John Darton: ‘The Dairyman: a Practical Guide to Cow-keeping, and the
Making of Butter and Cheese.’ London. 1872. 1_s._
Willis P. Hazard: ‘Butter and Butter-making, with the Best Methods
for Producing and Marketing it.’ Philadelphia. 1877.
H. M. Jenkins: ‘Hints on Butter-making.’ London. 1886. 6_d._
J. P. Sheldon: ‘Dairy Farming.’ London. 1_l._ 11_s._ 6_d._
Canon Bagot: ‘Easy Lessons in Dairying.’ London, 1883. 6_d._
The _Field._ London. Weekly. 6_d._
_THE CELLAR._