# How did the old timers do it?



## allenwrench (Sep 9, 2008)

With all the mail order cultures that are needed to make cheese nowadays. I wonder what the old timers used to make their cheese before UPS and Fed X were around?


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

The old timers let their milk set overnight to sour and then added fresh milk in the morning. They then added the rennet. Don't forget that animal rennet is an enzyme that can be found in the stomach of very young calves. 
Here is a web site for cheese without rennet.

http://thelibrary.springfield.missouri.org/lochist/periodicals/bittersweet/sp78l.htm


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## allenwrench (Sep 9, 2008)

Thanks

Did that system only work with raw milk?


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## farminghandyman (Mar 4, 2005)

some used some of the product to carry on the process, similar to the sour dough. such as using yogurt to make more of it,


http://www.cheesereporter.com/Comotto/Comotto.dec14.2008.htm


> Mother cultures and whole milk were the only option to early cheese manufacturing. Crude, by today&#8217;s standards, this process provided adequate but far from sustaining results.
> 
> Originating from naturally occurring micro flora found in milk, a mother culture was &#8220;isolated&#8221; and carried by the cheese manufacturer. The mother culture was then transferred and grown in heat treated whole milk and ripened until an acid coagulum was achieved.


the above article has kind of a history of commercial cheese making,
the pre cursor to the article above quote, and there is a section on keeping some of the whey to make a new batch of starter, 

and some cheese were regional as that is the only place a culture was grow able, or it was a practice that developed the type of cheese and how it was handled, 
another interesting link on history of cheese,
http://www.livescience.com/history/070528_cheese_science.html
http://www.cheesereporter.com/Comotto/comotto.oct12.2007.htm

this link kinda gives a little back ground on them figuring out what was happening in a cheddar cheese, http://jds.fass.org/cgi/reprint/35/6/554.pdf


jsut an excellent cheese site, (little to do with history) but you may be interested,
http://biology.clc.uc.edu/Fankhauser/Cheese/cheese.html


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

allenwrench said:


> Thanks
> 
> Did that system only work with raw milk?


Yes, the old timers used raw milk. Today, if you wish to pasteurize your milk, you can add yogurt or buttermilk as a starter.


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## Mrs. Homesteader (May 10, 2002)

I know someone (although for the life of me, I can't remember exactly who) who found someone butchering a young calf (maybe for veal?). They asked for the stomach. They washed it and then dehydrated it. They would use small pieces of it for the rennet. I will keep trying to remember who it was. I could then ask them how much they used. I remember it looked really gross.


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## Jennifer L. (May 10, 2002)

The first newsletter put out by the New England Cheesemaking Supply back in oh, late 1970's or early 80's had a front page story on an old Italian couple who made Mozzarella cheese using rennet from a calf's stomach. I remember they said "One thumbnail full". So I'd say it's about a teaspoon or less for their batch of cheese (several gallons of milk).

They took the new stomach, opened it up and cleaned out the grass and hay bits from the clotted colostrum, and then put the clotted colostrum back in and let it hang to dry. Can't remember if they salted the stomach or not, they may not have said. I've read instructions online for this within the past year, as well, I think.

Jennifer


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

Here is Fankhuaser's tutorial on making homemade rennet:

http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/Cheese/Rennet/rennet_preparation.html


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