,20 BULLETIN 970, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



sprays by a rotary pump. Between the sprays and the fan is a 

 series of baffle plates to remove the entrained water. Insulated 

 ducts carry the air into the curing rooms through the ceilings. Two 

 inlets are provided for a room 11 by 19 feet. The temperature of 

 the room is held constant by dampers in the inlets, operated by 

 compressed-air motors. These motors are regulated by a ther- 

 mostat. Four outlets in the ceiling of each room connect with a 

 common duct, which returns the air to the washer. This system 

 insures a thorough circulation of air within the room. By this 

 arrangement the air leaves the air washer at a temperature of 40° 

 to 45° F. and in a saturated condition. As it mixes with the 

 warmer air of the curing room the relative humidity drops, and it is 

 necessary in some cases to bring it to the desired point by intro- 

 ducing additional moisture. This is done very satisfactorily by 

 blowing a jet of steam into the current of air as it comes into the 

 room. This steam is carried under very low pressure and may be 

 regulated by hand so that the relative humidity is held within 

 narrow limits. The steam is at once absorbed by the air, and while 

 it adds a small amount of heat it has given very satisfactory 



results. 



PHENOMENA OF RIPENING. 



During the first weeks there is a gradual development of a red- 

 dish slime upon the surface of the cheese, interspersed with patches 

 of white and green mold. The latter in most cases is the Roquefort 

 mold. Judging from descriptions, domestic Roquefort does not take 

 on the same vigorous development of the white mold as occurs with 

 the French cheese. Sometimes the slime fails to develop rapidly. 

 By using some of the scrapings from imported cheese and sprinkling 

 the domestic cheese with a mixture of these scrapings and water 

 the development of this mold growth may be brought about without 

 great difficulty. 



After the first scraping there is only a slight development of the 

 white and green mold, but there is a much greater development of 

 lite slime organism. The growth needs to be removed every few 

 Weeks in order to permit the air to reach the mold in the interior of 

 i^e cheese. The development of the mold and slime is sufficient to 

 destroy the acidity of the cheese, and the removal of this growth is 

 necessary to prevent a putrefactive fermentation. Like the mold 

 on the outside, the mold on the inside does not appear to develop 

 to any marked extent after the first scraping. When held before an 

 electric light, if the cheese is cured at a temperature of from 48° to 

 50'^ F., the hyphse of the mold may usually be seen through the 

 punch holes in less than 10 days after punching. 



Within two or three weeks the colored mold is often well devel- 

 oped, and within a month there is very likely to be as much colored 



