Y BUTTUR M.IKIXU 69 



is the result of the development of the lactic fermentation. 

 If other fermentations aid in the production of this im- 

 portant quality of butter, they must he looked upon as 

 secondary. In practice the degree or intensity of flavor 

 is easily controlled by governing the formation of lactic 

 acid. That is, the flavor develops gradually with the 

 increase in the acidity of the cream. Sweet cream butter 

 for example is almost entirely devoid of flavor, while 

 cream with an average richness possesses the maximum 

 amount of good flavor possible when the acidity has 

 reached .6%. 



From this it might appear that all of the flavor is inher- 

 ent in the lactic acid itself. But this is not the case. The 

 souring of milk free from fat does not produce the flavor 

 found in sour cream, though the acid is the same in 

 both cases. The view held by Duclaux is perhaps the 

 most satisfactory in explaining the origin of the flavor 

 produced in cream ripening. He maintains that since 

 some caproic and butyric acids always exist in a free 

 state in butter, the flavor may be the result of the forma- 

 tion of caproic and butyric ethers from these acids. 



The formation of such ether compounds in cream 

 would doubtless be due to the presence of lactic acid. 

 And it can not be denied that the lactic acid itself figures 

 as one of the components of butter flavor. 



Churnability. Practical experience shows that sour 

 cream is more easily churnable than sweet cream. This 

 is explained by the fact that the development of acid in 

 cream tends to diminish its viscosity. The concussion pro- 

 duced in churning causes the little microscopic fat glob- 

 ules to flow together and coalesce, ultimately forming the 

 small granules of butter visible in the churn. A high 

 viscosity impedes the movement of these globules. It is 



