🔄 Ripening
Also known as: cheese ripening, aging, affinage
Aging cheese for weeks to years.
Ripening is the ageing of cheese, during which it develops its flavour, aroma and proper texture. In French this process is called “affinage”. Young cheese, after pressing and salting, is fairly bland and springy. It is left in rooms where temperature and humidity are controlled. Cheese ripens for anything from a few days to several years, usually from three weeks to two years or more.
Inside the cheese, enzymes and microbes are at work. They break down the protein casein and the milk fat into amino acids, fatty acids and other substances. These build up the flavour. For some cheeses, mould matters. Camembert and brie grow white mould on the outside and ripen in weeks, because moulds work faster than bacteria. Blue cheeses such as Stilton and Roquefort ripen from the inside.
The holes in Emmental are bubbles of carbon dioxide given off by propionic acid bacteria. Some cheeses get their orange rind from the bacterium Brevibacterium linens. Hard cheeses such as Parmesan, pecorino and cheddar need months or years. Salt slows ripening and holds back unwanted bacteria.
How it connects to milk
🔄 Ripening → gives → 🧀 Cheese → made from → 🥛 Milk
Links
- Previous step
- 🔄 Pressing
- What it yields
- 🧀 Cheese, 🧀 Parmesan, 🧀 Pecorino, 🧀 Roquefort, 🧀 Camembert, 🧀 Gouda, 🧀 Cheddar, 🧀 Monterey Jack, 🫕 Smen
- Wine and milk
- 🍷 Wine cellar
Frequently asked questions
How long does cheese take to ripen?
From a few days to several years. Soft mould-ripened cheeses like Camembert take weeks; hard ones like Parmesan take months or years.
Why does cheese have holes?
In cheeses like Emmental, propionic acid bacteria make them: as the cheese ripens they give off carbon dioxide, which collects in bubbles.