272 Milk and Its Products 
In order to obviate the difficulties that arise from 
leaving too much whey‘in the curd and still make a 
cheese of soft texture, the practice of “washing” or 
“soaking” curds has come into use. An ordinary 
cheddar or stirred-curd is made, making it dry and firm. 
When ready for the press the curd is immersed in cold 
water (60° F.) for fifteen to forty minutes. The water 
acts to remove bad flavors that may have been pres- 
ent in the milk and the curd swells and absorbs a 
considerable amount of water. The resulting cheese 
has a soft melting texture but the flavor is usually 
deficient or no better than would have resulted from 
leaving too much whey in the curd. 
Because of the larger amount of water it contains, 
this kind of cheese is profitable to the producer of 
the milk and to the manufacturer, and when properly 
made and carefully cured, it may be of excellent 
quality, being mild, creamy and soft; but largely, 
too, because of the large amount of water contained 
in it, it is easily subject to decomposition changes, goes 
off flavor rapidly, and does not bear transportation well. 
Sage cheese.—In many parts of the United States this 
cheese is very popular for local consumption. Its 
manufacture is not different from the ordinary type of 
cheese, either cheddar or stirred-curd, but an infusion 
of sage leaves, or sage extract (in which latter case the 
green color is secured by an infusion of fresh leaves of 
any inert plant, as clover, green corn, etc.), is added to 
the milk before the rennet coagulation, and imparts a 
light greenish color and characteristic flavor to the curd. 
Ordinarily, where sage cheese is made, the sage is 
