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Ask Dr. Cheese |
Dr. Cheese knows Everything about Cheese |
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| Introduction | History | Farm | Creamery | Making cheese 1 | Making cheese 2 | Links |
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THE FARM The story of dairying begins on the farm. Twice daily or even more frequently, seven days a week, the farmer attaches the milking machine to the udders of his cows. The milking machine sucks in the same way as a young calf. The milk container fills in sudden spurts and the 'white gold' is then fed into the cooling tank. In fact dairy products really begin their life even earlier, with the grass and the silage fed to the cattle. As well as milking twice a day, the farmer is busy all summer growing sufficient lush grass. The cattle graze the grass in the meadow, but some is cut and stored ready for winter feeding. Grass and silage provide the energy and basis of milk. As well as the production of foodstuffs, feeding and milking, the farmer is also kept busy improving his herd. During the six thousand years that the cow has been kept by man, milk production has increased enormously. Nowadays it averages 6000 liters per cow per year, some cows even produce 10.000 liters or more per annum. Cheese making Imaging a sunny Saturday morning in the green heart of Holland. Alongside a canal next to a narrow country lane a sign reads 'Farmhouse cheese for sale'. Although nowadays most cheese is produced in factories, there are still farmers who make their own; especially in the province of South Holland and the area around Utrecht. Inside the farm there is a counter. The farmers wife is selling a wide variety of cheeses to cheese lovers who come from far and wide to buy their particular favorite. The farmer is busy with the vats in which the milk is left to coagulate until it forms curds and one of their sons is busy turning the cheeses in their plastic moulds. More cheese are ripening on the wooden shelves which run along the walls. You are always welcome to taste the cheese. From the mild flavor of young cheese, to the fuller flavor from cheese which have been left to mature for several months. If you close your eyes the taste of the various cheeses combined with the sweet smell of the farm brings the past to the present day. |
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