WENSLEYDALE CHEESE-MAKING III 



adding the rennet and salting the curd is from 

 six to eight hours. In the old system of making, 

 the direct application of salt to the curd was 

 only practised with large cheeses, the rule being 

 to place the pressed cheeses in a strong brine, 

 and leave them there for three or four days. 

 The objections to this method are (i) The un- 

 certainty as to the amount of brine the cheese 

 actually absorbs, as owing to differences in the 

 amount of acidity present in the curd, the 

 cheeses rarely absorb similar quantities, and as 

 a consequence there is great variation in the 

 cheeses produced. (2) The brine frequently 

 does not penetrate to the centre of the cheese, 

 and as a consequence a portion of it remains 

 unsalted. (3) Placing cheeses in a brine cools 

 them down to a very low temperature, and this 

 interferes with the curing. 



When direct salting of the curd is practised, 

 it is necessary to allow a greater development 

 of acidity than when brining is practised. The 

 necessity for this arises from the rapid check 

 of acid development when hand salting is 

 followed, and the slow check of it when brining 

 is followed. 



