1044 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 



liness and eweetness ; for if it be kept too long, so aa to become foul or tainted, the cheese will invariably 

 become affected by it, and will prove unfit for use. 



7016. In Holland a small quantity of the muriatic acid is used instead of rennet ; and it is the use 

 of this article which gives to the Dutch cheese that pungent relish which induces so many persons to 

 prefer it. 



7047. Colouring matter. As cheese in its native state, that is, such as is well manu- 

 factured, being put together in proper time, the milk being of a proper degree of warmth, 

 and in all other respects properly pressed, salted, and dried, is uniformly of a bright 

 yellow cast, the idea of excellence is generally attached to cheese of such a colour. 

 Hence it has become necessary for the dairyman, who would dispose of his cheese to 

 advantage, to impart a light yellow orange colour to it by artificial means. 



7018. Turmeric, marigolds, hawthorn buds, and other vegetables, were formerly employed for this pur- 

 pose ; but these have long since been rejected for the Spanish Arnotto, which is unquestionably the best 

 ingredient of the kind that can be used for the colouring of cheese. It is a preparation of the roucon 

 or arnotto tree [Bixa Orellana lAx\.,fig. 166.), which is a native of America. The red pulp, that covers 

 the seeds of this tree, is suspended in hot water, and allowed to subside, and when dry, is formed into 

 cakes or balls, which are further set aside, until they become completely dry and firm. One ounce of this 

 substance, when genuine, will be sufficient to colour an hundred weight of cheese ; and this is the com- 

 mon allowance in the county of Gloucester; in Cheshire, the weight of a guinea and a half is considered 

 to be sufficient for a cheese of sixty pounds weight. The usual mode of applying the arnotto is to dip a 

 piece, of the requisite size and weight, in a bowl of milk, and rub it on a smooth stone until the milk 

 assume a deep red colour. This infusion is to be added to the milk, of which cheese is intended to be 

 made, in such a quantity as will impart to the whole a bright orange colour, which will become the deeper 

 in proportion to the age of the cheese. The mixing of the arnotto in no respect affects either its taste or 

 smell. 



7049. In the county of Cheshire, however, a somewhat different practice obtains. There, when the 

 colouring matter is wanted, it is usual to tie up as much of the substance as may be deemed sufficient in 

 a linen rag ; putting it into half a pint of warm water, to let it stand over night. In the morning, im- 

 mediately before the milk is coagulated, the whole of this infusion is mixed with it in the cheese-tub, and 

 the rag is dipped in the milk, and rubbed on the palm of the hand, until all the colouring matter is com- 

 pletely extracted. A more simple method is directed by Parkinson : " Take," says he, " a piece about 

 the size of a hazel nut, put it into a pint of milk the night before you intend to make cheese, and it will 

 dissolve. Add it to the milk at the time the rennet is put ia The quantity will suffice to colour a cheese 

 of twenty pounds weight" {Parkinson on Live Stock, vol. i. p. 62.) 



7050. Setting the curd. The proper season for making cheese is from the beginning 

 of May till the close of September, or in favourable seasons till the middle of October. 

 Very good cheese, however, may be made in winter, provided the cows be well fed. A 

 certain elevation of temperature is requisite to the coagulation of milk, and it may 

 naturally be supiDosed to be nearly that of the stomachs of milk-taking animals. Marshal 

 is of opinion that from 85 to 90 degrees of heat, and two hours of time, are the fittest 

 for coagulation. 



7051. Climate, season, weather, and pasture may require that these limits should sometimes be violated. 

 Milk produced from poor clays will require to be coagulated at a higher temperature than that which is 

 procured from rich pastures. In some dairies the milk is heated to the proper temperature ; but the most 

 approved practice is to mix boiling water in such a proportion as shall render the milk of a proper degree 

 of heat to receive the rennet ; this the thermometer should be used to determine. In hot weather the 

 milk in the cows' udders is liable to become very much agitated by their running about, or being driven 

 to too great a distance : so that if rennet be put to it in this state, the curd, instead of coming in one or 

 two hours, will require three, four, or five hours, and will be so spongy, tough, and in every respect so 

 imperfect, as to be scarcely capable of being confined in the press or vat ; and when released from the 

 press, it will heave or split, and be good for little. Whenever, therefore, cows are discovered to be in this 

 state, which perhaps can scarcely be avoided during very hot weather, where cows are pastured abroad, 

 in unsheltered grounds, or where water is not within their reach ; it will be advisable to add some cold 

 fresh spring water to the milk as soon as it is brought into the dairy. The quantity to be mixed, in order 

 to impart the proper degree of heat, can in this case only be regulated by experience and the use of the 

 thermometer. The effect of the water thus added will, in both cases, be to make the rennet take effect 

 much sooner, and consequently to accelerate the coagulation of the milk. 



7052. The proportion of rennet and time requisite for coagulation have been already mentioned (7045. 

 7050.) : too much rennet ought not to be put in, otherwise the cheese will be ready to heave, as well as 

 become rank and strong ; the same effects will also be produced if the rennet be made with bad or foul 

 materials, or if it be too strong to operate in the given time (two hours). During the process, the milk 

 ought to be covered so as not to lose more than five or seven degrees of its original heat. One or two 

 handfuls of salt added previously to mixing the rennet will promote coagulation. Some put in a bowl, 

 which is an absurd ancient custom, and injurious rather than useful. 



7053. When the coagulation has taken place, the curd is broken or cut with a cheese-knife, which causes 

 the whey to rise through the incisions, and the curd sinks with more ease. After a short time the cutting 

 is repeated, still more freely than before ; and is continued until the curd is reduced to small uniform 

 particles. This operation will require about three quarters of an hour : the cheese-tub is again covered 

 with a cloth, and is allowed to remain for the same time. When the curd has sunk to the bottom of the 

 vessel, the whey is taken off by the hand, or by means of a skimming-dish ; another quarter of an hour 

 should now be allowed for the curd to settle, drain, and become solid, before it is broken into the vat, as it 

 prevents the fat from being squeezed out through the fingers, and of course contributes to improve the 

 quality of the cheese. Sometimes, in addition to the skimming-dish, a semicircular board and weight, 

 adapted to the size of the tub, are employed. The curd is again cut as before, in order to promote the free 

 separation of the whey, and pressure is again applied till it be wholly drawn off Great attention is re- 

 quisite in conducting this part of the business ; and if any particles of slip curd should be seen floating 

 in the whey, it ought to be carefully laded off with the whey ; as it will not incorporate with the solid 

 curd, but dissolving in the cheese, causes whey-springs, as already mentioned, and materially impairs its 

 soundness. If the whey be of a green colour, when loaded or pressed out, it is a certain criterion that the 

 curd has been properly formed : but if it be of a white colour, it is equally certain that the coagulation 

 is imperfect, the cheese will be sweet, and of little value, and much valuable caseous matter will be com- 

 pletely thrown away. In the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk, the cheese manufacturers have recourse to 

 a somewhat different method for extracting the whey, which is worthy of notice : when they think the 

 milk sufficiently coagulated, they lay a strainer in a basket made for the purpose ; into which they put the 

 curd, and suffer it to remain there for some time to drain, before they break the curd. When the curd 

 is sufficiently drained, it is put into two or three separate vessels, and is broken with the hand as small as 



