48 SCIENCE AND PRACTICE OF CHEESE-MAKING 



especially when exposed to high temperatures. 

 Under the combined conditions of such defects of 

 texture and the soft, pasty body characteristic of 

 such cheese, the cheese easily loses its shape, bul- 

 ging more or less ; this sometimes goes so far as to 

 cause the cheese to roll off the shelf. 



Moisture and flavor. — Cheese made from curd 

 containing a large percentage of water (whey) is 

 apt to develop offensive flavors in ripening, espe- 

 cially when kept at temperatures above 65° F. In 

 some cases, excessive moisture results in sour or 

 acid cheese. Dry cheese develops, flavor slowly 

 and can stand a higher ripening temperature. 



Moisture and keeping quality. — Cheese contain- 

 ing a large amount of moisture has poor keeping 

 quality, as already indicated above in connection with 

 flavor and texture, while the reverse is true of 

 dry cheese. 



Moisture and finish. — Cheese containing too 

 much moisture loses its shape easily in hot 

 weather, when the temperature of the curing- 

 room can not be controlled. In such cheese, the 

 rind formation is usually poor and cap-cloths do not 

 stick well. 



CONTROL OF MOISTURE IN CHEESE- 

 MAKING 



We now give briefly the means to be used in 

 controlling moisture at different stages of cheese- 

 making. 



(i) Cutting curd. — The finer the pieces into 

 which the curd is cut, the more easily does the 



