Archive for the ‘Events’ Category
Taste of Maine Event in DC
On Tuesday, April 23rd I attended the inaugural “Taste of Maine” event hosted by Maine’s Senate delegation: Susan Collins, and Angus King. I brought with me 14 pounds of Maine cheese from 14 different cheese makers to show how diversified and delicious the award winning cheeses of Maine can be.
Former State veterinarian Don Hoenig, who is currently serving a fellowship in Washington, DC, encouraged the Guild to get involved, and the Maine State Chamber of Commerce organized the event, which went off without a hitch. It took place in the Kennedy Caucus Room on the third floor of the Russell Senate Office Building across the street from the Capitol. The beautiful room, and the abundance of good Maine food, made for a very successful event.
The Maine Senators address the Taste of Maine attendees
UMaine Dairy Sanitation Workshop
Posted by BethCalder in Events, Learning, News on April 22nd, 2013
May 16, 2013 – 8:00am-5:00pm
Nutting Hall, Room 204 – University of Maine, Orono campus (links for directions and a campus map).
Lunch is included and coffee and snacks in the morning.
Space is limited to the first 30 people. Cost for Guild Members: $30.00 / Non-Guild Members: $60.00
This workshop will cover an overview of sanitation topics such as bacterial pathogens related to dairy products, milking/milk room sanitation, as well as facility sanitation. Ronda Stone from the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation & Forestry will also talk about sanitation from an inspector’s perspective. Other special guests will include Sarah Spring, Spring Day Creamery who will discuss her own recent sanitation issues and how she overcame them. We will also have hands-on activities in the Pilot Plant to take the theory we learned and put it to practice.
For more information about this 1 day training and how to register, please visit this web site: http://umaine.edu/food-health/food-safety/dairy-sanitation-workshop/.
Due to the hands-on activities, we have to limit the attendance to 30 people.
Please contact
–Beth Calder (581-2791 or beth.calder@maine.edu) if you have questions in regards to the workshop.
–Melissa Libby if you have registration questions at 1-800-287-7170 or Melissa.Libby1@maine.edu.
Workshops 2013: Scholarships
Guild members voted to offer HALF scholarships to two Guild members during each of the scheduled 2013 Workshops (Natural Wraps, and Washed Rinds). Any Guild member was eligible.
The Guild Board members have voted on which members should receive the the scholarships, and the top two vote getters have been identified. (Board members who applied for scholarships were not allowed to vote to award a scholarship for the class to which they applied.)
Congratulations to:
WASHED RIND CHEESES (March 31 – April 1)
Sarah Spring
Heather Donahue
NATURAL WRAPPED AND CLABBERED CHEESES (April 20 – 21)
Sarah Spring
Amy Clark
Thank you to everyone who participated, and happy cheese making!
–Eric Rector
President, Maine Cheese Guild
Welcome To The Maine Ag Trade Show!
2013 Maine Dairy Princesses with Cheese Guild President Eric Rector at the beginning of the 2013 Maine Agricultural Trade Show in Augusta.
Governor Paul LePage addresses the Ag Commissioner’s Luncheon at the trade show.
The Maine Cheese Guild booth in the main hall.
Holiday Havarti Recipe
It’s finally here! Bring yours to the Holiday Party on December 10th to taste how different makers make different cheese.
That means we all have to make our cheese at the same time: the week of October 15th should give enough time for it to age. Ready, set….
If you’re licensed, and you’re willing to donate your left-overs to the Guild after the party, we’ll be selling them to Maine cheese retailers as a Guild fundraiser.
Good luck and have fun!
——
Here’s a link to a PDF file of the Havarti Recipe for better printing.
Havarti
From Dave Potter (DCI) Workshop, ACS Conference 2012
Milk should be around 4.8% butterfat; add cream if necessary.
Heat treat milk, then bring to 90degF
Add culture @ 5 DCU per 100 pounds milk: Probat 222, OR CHN 22, OR Mesophilic Aromatic B, OR MM100 plus LM57, OR Flor Danica that’s been cultured overnight
Add Calcium Chloride at rate of 30ml/1000 pounds of milk
Add color (optional) at rate of 3ml/1000 pounds of milk
After 45 minute ripening cultures, add rennet (single strength at 75ml/1000 pounds milk) diluted 40x
Measure floculation and wait 2.5x to 3x (firmer to softer cheese) — around 45 minutes total from renneting — before cutting.
Cut into 3/8″ pieces, then let heal for 5 minutes.
Stir slowly for 20 minutes.
Remove whey = to 1/3 original milk volume.
Add hot water (145degF) in same amount as removed to raise the vat temp to 102degF final cook temp.
Stir 30 minutes
Remove 40% of whey (which is less than the first remove).
Stir until curd is “firm curd” and a handful starts to stick together well, another 30 minutes, typically ending 90 minutes after cutting.
Hoop every mold, then immediately turn every cheese and place with the follower DOWN so it presses itself by its own weight. Ideally it drains in the bottom of an empty vat to keep the curd temp up.
Turn every 15 minutes for an hour.
Turn every hour until the pH is 5.8 – 6.0.
(If you’re making 20 pound wheels, you may want to chill your cheese overnight in a 50degF acidified (pH 5.2) water bath with 2oz/1000 pounds water of CaCl added.)
Otherwise place in saturated brine for 2.5-3.0 hours per lb. of cheese depending on desired salt content. Alternatively, rub cheese wheels with coarse flake dry salt once per day for each 3-4 lb. of cheese.
Air dry the cheese until it can be waxed, or vacuum sealed.
Wheels are aged at 50-55degF and 85-90% RH
If you wish to have a natural rind you will need to wash it with a coarse cloth or semi-firm brush dipped in 2-3 % brine solution. The solution is applied every other day and the cheeses are turned over. After approx. 30 days it is possible wash and turn the cheeses every 3-4 days. At this time the rind should be turning the characteristic orange color, which indicates the growth of Brevibacterium linens. After 60 days it is possible to use a dry brush for cleaning.
Open Creamery Day Sunday October 7th, 2012
The Maine Cheese Guild presents
Open Creamery Day 2012
on Sunday, October 7th from 11am to 3pm (unless ***otherwise noted*** below).
As the hardwood foliage bursts in a blaze of colors on Columbus Day weekend, take in the spectacular sights and taste some award-winning cheese during the Maine Cheese Guild’s annual Open Creamery Day. Visit many of Maine’s cheese makers in their creameries, meet the animals, and learn the stories behind Maine’s more than 150 artisan cheeses. Along the way you can also visit a farmers’ market, stop at an orchard, explore one of Maine’s premier breweries or wineries, pick fruit at Maine’s legendary orchards, and drop-in on one of the many artisan bread makers our state has to offer. You’ll love the views, and the taste of Maine cheese, straight from the source, will be the best memory of all!
See link below for a MAP and a list of participating cheese makers:
World Jersey Cheese Awards 2012 Call for Entries
Hello cheesemakers-
This is just a reminder that entries for the World Jersey Cheese Awards are due Friday, September 21. If you’ve already entered and haven’t received your confirmation and shipping instructions, please contact coordinator Alison Le Gallais (wjcb@royaljersey.co.uk).
The online entry form can be found on the Jersey Cheese Awards website. Contest rules can also be found on the website. Entry size will be limited to 1 pound (500g) due to the contest’s importation license.
There is no cost to enter and cheesemakers need only pay shipping to get their product to the U.S. consolidation point for shipping to the Isle of Jersey. Entrants will receive further shipping details after the entry form is received.
Thank you and good luck!
Sarah Gilbert
National All-Jersey, Inc.
6486 East Main Street
Reynoldsburg, OH 43068
The Big E Cheese Competition 2012
—Contest Entry Forms and Fees Due August 10th—
Do you want your cheese to get recognized for its amazing taste?
Enter the fourth annual Big E Gold Medal Cheese Competition.
If you make cheese and are a licensed cheese maker located in New England, submit your entry forms and fees by August 10th, then prepare to send your contest entries to arrive at the Eastern States Exposition by August 21st and 22nd for the Judging Day of August 24th.
Good luck!
ACS Raleigh — Day Two
There is so much to pack into each ACS conference (or maybe because many of the attendees work with dairy animals) things start early; with breakfast at 7:30am, Kevin and I woke at 6:00am with the sun clearing the horizon and the Progress Energy building across from the Marriott; the moisture in the air is visible this early, though the locals say that we’ve been very lucky. The temps have *only* been in the 90s the last few days, and that trend is forecast to continue — a serious cool down for August.
After breakfast (largely of Vermont cheese for me, though muffins and bagels were also available) Temple Grandin kicked off the conference this morning. She had a lot to say about animal welfare, organic versus conventional agriculture, BIG ag versus small ag, Europe vs. US ag, and the shocking lack of basic biology knowledge in the general public. Her speech was inspiring, especially in how she was able to convince huge corporations to care about the animals the processed– she claimed that right now more than 50% of the animals slaughtered in the US are processed using equipment she designed. The speech was also reassuring because I know many farmers who are using similar measures to what she described as necessary so that any animal has “a life worth living” even if they are grown to become meat.
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August 13th Meeting at Creeping Thyme
Posted by admin in Events, Farmstead, Find Cheese, Find Milk, Goats Milk, Guild, Learning, Retailer on June 19th, 2012
Our August 2012 meeting took place at Creeping Thyme in Buxton. Marie & Tim Clements gave us all a guided tour of their barns, milk room and cheese rooms. Then they spread out a feast of cheeses and fudges from their amazing array of products. Those little goats sure work hard!
Eric Rector and Heather Donahue both gave excellent presentations about their experiences at the recent American Cheese Society meeting and Traktec’s Donna Murray was on hand to tell us about their Maine -based label manufacturing company.
