Brining

The primary reason for salting cheese, is to slow down, or stop, the bacteria process converting lactose to lactic acid. During the brining process, most of the lactose is removed. If the cheese were not salted, the residual moisture within the cheese, contains enough lactose to produce more acid than is ideal for proper ripening. The secondary purpose for brining your cheese, is for the added flavor.

Salting the cheese also pulls moisture from the surface, properly drying it out for rind development. It also inhibits the growth of a variety of molds, that are attracted to cheese.

Check out our article for Brining cheese, including detailed pictures here!

How to Make a Light Brine Solution

A light aging brine for storing and aging soft cheese is quite different than a higher saturated salt brine used for aging hard cheese.

A light aging brine needs to have enough salt to inhibit bacteria in the water. 6-8% is a nice range, we have settled on 7% as our brine for aging soft white cheese.

The below ingredients are used to make one liter of light brine, you can easily factor up for larger volumes.

Ingredients:

• A little more than 1 liter Warm Chlorine Free Water (about 5 cups)
• 70g Salt (7% of 1000g, because 1 liter of water weighs 1000g)
• 1.5-2 tsp Calcium Chloride
• White Vinegar (only enough to match pH of finished cheese)

Directions:

1. Boil and cool water.
2. Mix together 700-800 ml (3 cups) of the warm water and salt until dissolved, then top off with additional warm water so the solution is equal to one liter (about 4-1/4 cups).
3. Add calcium chloride, mix well and store in a sealed container.
4. Once finished, chill the brine to aging temperature. We drop ours to a cave temperature of 52F but you can bring it to fridge temperature if that is where you store your cheese.
5. Before using brine check the pH level of both the final cheese and brine with a pH testing strip. If they do not match add a small amount of white vinegar to the brine solution until the pH levels match.

Note: It is always best to measure salt by weight and not by volume because different salts can vary in density.

How to Make a Saturated Brine Solution

To prepare a saturated brine solution, mix these ingredients in a non reactive pan.

Saturated Brine Solution (5.2 pH)

Ingredients:

• 1 Gallon Non Chlorinated Water
• 2 .25 Lbs Salt
• 1 Tbs Calcium Chloride (30% solution)*
• 1 Tsp White Vinegar

*Fresh brine needs to have Calcium Chloride added, because low calcium in the brine will cause the calcium inside the cheese, responsible for binding the proteins, to be pulled into the brine. This will in time cause a weakening of the curd structure and a softening of the rind. When making fresh brine, you can also add one cup of clear whey for every gallon of brine, because the whey will contain calcium. Then add salt until it no longer dissolves into the water, then just a bit more so it is saturated. This will be about 23% salt when the brine is 52-54F.

If you are measuring for a target pH, simply add a bit of citric acid until the target level is reached.

How To Brine Your Cheese

When cheese is done being pressed, it should be moved to a cool location, so the temperature can drop to the same temperature of the brine solution. Brining warm cheese increases the rate of salt absorption, resulting in over salting. Once cooled, place the cheese into the salt brine solution.

• The density of the brine will cause the cheese to float, so the top surface of the cheese will float above the brine. Because of this, the top surface of the cheese will need to be salted. Simply, sprinkle a small amount of salt on the top surface of the cheese. This salt will create its own brine, as it mixes with the surface moisture from the cheese.
• Half way through the process the cheese should be flipped and re-salted for an even brine.
• Cheese of different densities and shapes will require varying amounts of time in the brine. A general guide would be one hour per pound, per one inch thickness of cheese. A very dense, low moisture cheese, such as Parmesan, will need more time than a moist open textured cheese.
• Once the cheese has been brined, it should be drained and allowed to air dry, while turning, for 1-3 days or until a firm, dry surface is observed. After drying, the cheese will be ready for waxing or the development of a natural rind.

Bringing FAQs

How do I know when there is enough salt? A cheese brine is typically a saturated brine strength. This means adding salt until it no longer dissolves when added.

How do I replenish my salt brine? When adding fresh cheese to a pre-made brine solution, always sprinkle a good amount of salt on the surface of the floating cheese. This ensures an even brine and also adds salt back into the brine solution, so no salt is depleted.

How do I store and maintain my brine? Brine should be kept cool and be stored in an non-reactive container. Many cheese makers store brine in their cheese cave, where it is 52-54F.The brine should be stabilized at an acid level similar to the cheese being salted, this is typically around 5.4-4.9 pH.

How long can I store saturated brine? We generally keep same brine for 1-2 years because good brine gets better with time. Also, dumping such a heavy load of salt down the drain can be hard on a water treatment system.If the brine gets surface mold or looks cloudy, simply boil and filter it. To filter brine, we place cotton balls in a funnel then pour the brine through, to catch any debris or particles.

How do I utilize B.Linens in my brine solution ? Specific washed rind cheese recipes will have instructions for this process. There are unfortunately no general rules in this category.