74 STORRS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION 
to the boards, so that when they are turned a thin skin is torn 
off. In such cases it is difficult to obtain a good growth of 
mold, for the latter is pulled off with the thin film of yeast, 
the cheese does not ripen properly, and it often has a strong, 
bad flavor. 3 | 
MOLDS. 
Contamination from the other varieties of mold causes con- 
siderable trouble. If the cheeses contain spots of green mold 
or brown, or if a long, fuzzy mold, sometimes with black tops 
(Mucors) appears, the Camembert mold cannot grow proper- 
ly, and the result is often a bitter cheese or one with other 
undesirable flavors. The Camembert mold will sometimes 
grow over and cover the green and other molds, but this does 
not prevent them from producing an objectionable flavor. 
When such infection from foreign molds occurs, the whole 
equipment should be sterilized, and if possible the walls and 
floors of the making as well as the ripening rooms should be 
cleaned and whitewashed. 
DRY CHEESE. 
The drying out of cheese is caused by lack of moisture in 
the ripening rooms, or by too rapid draining of the curd. Such 
cheeses can often be saved, if the drying out has not proceeded 
too far, by wrapping them tightly in tin foil. 
WET CHEESE. 
A defect just the opposite of the last is found in wet 
cheeses. It is caused by too low a temperature of the making 
room, as well as by too low a degree of acidity of the milk, 
both of which retard the draining of the cheese. It may also 
be caused by too high a degree of moisture in the ripening 
rooms. 
The ripening of such cheeses is more in the nature of a 
liquefaction, and the interior becomes so soft that it would 
run out if the cheese were not kept in a box. There is no hope 
for such cheeses, as the flavor and texture will never be 
satisfactory. 
MITES. 
Serious damage is done to cheeses by the cheese mite, a 
small insect, scarcely visible to the naked eye. These mites 
crawl all over the cheese, and eat up or destroy the mold, so 
that the cheeses will not ripen properly, and is practically 
ruined. The only remedy in such cases is the thorough dis- 
infection of the whole plant. | 
