Arizona help

[Gytaryst]

I brewed beer for years and this website was not only a daily routine but an indispensable part of my home brew journey. I stopped brewing around the end of 2018 and so I had no need to visit here.

My wife and I decided to get into not only cheese making, but yogurt, sour cream, butter, buttermilk - anything milk really. We've made a few attempts at mozzarella and ricotta, nothing edible.

We live near Surprise, Arizona. There doesn't seem to be a big cheese making community here. Several of the LHBS used to sell cheese making supplies, but it seems like most gave up on that line. I'm wondering if it's worth pursuing it here, is there something about the climate that is not conducive? Is there something about the milk produced here?

We've followed a few recipes and instructions to the letter, and nothing seems to even remotely turn out. I could understand if we were a little off, or slightly off. We've tried different milk from different stores, different rennet, different methods, different instructions. And I have no problem continuing to experiment. I just don't want to keep pouring gallons of milk down the drain if it's not possible.

 

[ehall]

are you using pasturized milk? I would think you would have a better product if you used raw. The only place I know to get raw milk around here is far east valley. Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert, etc.

 

[bernardsmith]

What exactly is the problem that you are finding? If we have a better idea of the problem then we might be able to offer possible solutions. Simply knowing that nothing you make comes close to a good product does not really suggest where the problem might reside: it could be the milk but I make milk almost weekly with store bought milk. I simply add Calcium chloride. It could be the metals of the equipment you use. It might be the way that you press the milk. It could be that you are not using the kind of rennet you need for cheese making or the salt you use is killing the bacteria you want or the water you use is creating a problem... But if we have a better handle on the problem/s then we might be able to offer candidate solutions.

 

[passedpawn]

You can make fine cheese with pasteurized milk, though raw is better. Unless you're very lucky, you won't find raw for sale except for pet use.

Forget about mozz. All the websites lie on this topic: it is not an easy cheese at all to make. Go to Gavin Webbers site, perhaps buy his ebook, and start from page 1.

https://www.littlegreencheese.com/