PRESSING OF RENNET CHEESE. 223 



ated. The cylindrical moulds without floors, if they are not deeper 

 than about 10 centimetres, are not provided with holes, and are so 

 shaped that they can be placed either wider or narrower. 



In England and America, the deep cylindrical-shaped chests, open 

 above and below, are provided with holes. They are made out of strong 

 white-metal, and are used in the manufacture of Chester, Cheddar, and 

 Dunlop cheeses. In Switzerland, in the preparation of round cheese, 

 round bent bands or strips of about the breadth of a hand are employed. 

 They are made of selected beechwood, without holes, and are bound 

 together by a strong string, which permits of their being drawn closer or 

 opener as desired. In France, in the manufacture of green cheese, round 

 bent bands made of zinc or white -metal are employed, which likewise 

 admit of being drawn narrower or wider apart, and which possess no 

 holes. In Holland, in the manufacture of Gouda cheese, bowl-shaped 

 wooden moulds, provided with holes, are used. 



If the round cheese-moulds in which the cheese is pressed are to per- 

 form their function in a proper manner, they must be of a durable nature, 

 and must be so constructed that it can be at once seen if the discs between 

 which the cheese is pressed are not exactly parallel, so that the whey may 

 be allowed to flow away without hindrance, and the turning of the cheese 

 and the changing of the cheese-cloths may be easily and conveniently 

 effected. 



The cloths which are used for wrapping up the cheese in the moulds, 

 or for compressing them in the moulds, are specially woven out of strong 

 hemp yarn. In order that the whey may easily run off, and that the 

 cheese may quickly dry, these cloths must be coarsely woven (with a large 

 mesh). The yarn must not, however, be too coarse, and must be strongly 

 twisted, since in its use it is so completely soaked that the porosity of the 

 cloths is decreased. 



114. Pressing of Rennet Cheese. The different kinds of soft 

 cheeses are either not pressed at all, or only very slightly, by laying 

 on weights, and without subsequently increasing the amount of 

 the weight. There are, however, certain kinds of hard cheeses 

 which are not pressed, but which are nevertheless very firm and 

 dry. Hardness and dryness of the cheese is scarcely influenced by 

 the strength of pressure applied, but almost entirely by the method 

 in which it is manufactured, and by the subsequent treatment of 

 the curd in the cheese-vat (fig. 70). The only object in pressing is to 

 facilitate the expulsion of the whey from the fresh cheese, and at 

 the same time to promote the cohesion of the single particles of the 



