CREAM RIPENING. 75 



ferment culture is added to the sweet cream and 

 the cream allowed to sour at regular ripening tem- 

 perature. This system is considered much superior 

 to the natural ripening process and as a rule much 

 better results are obtained by its use. Undesirable 

 fermentations can be controlled and a more uniform 

 product can be obtained. Coarse flavors can be 

 partly eliminated and butter of finer and more deli- 

 cate flavor can be manufactured. Since agreeable 

 flavors in butter have a high commercial value it is 

 absolutely necessary that a controlling factor be 

 used every day in the year to insure a reasonably 

 fine, pure and delicate flavor in butter. This can 

 be accomplished in no better way than by the judi- 

 cious use of a pure lactic ferment culture in the 

 cream to be manufactured into butter. 



99. Evil effect of high acid in cream. It is well 

 known that when a eei'tain per cent of acid has de- 

 veloped in cream the lactic acid undergoes a per- 

 ceptible change easily recognized by taste or smell, 

 or by the appearance of the cream. Lactic acid in 

 whole or skimmed milk has reached its finest flavor 

 when it has developed about .65-. 75 per cent acidity, 

 and in cream when about .55-. 65 per cent acidity is 

 reached. High acid in cream seems to favor the de- 

 velopment of oily, sour, bitter, rancid, acid and 

 coarse flavors in butter. It also impairs its keeping 

 quality and reduces its market value besides de- 

 stroying the fine flavor and aroma belonging to 

 properly ripened good cream. Cream should be 

 ripened to a degree of acidity which conforms to the 

 methods in use for the handling of it, that is — the 



