Cotswold is a creamy and buttery cheese that has a sweet mild flavor and a crumbly firm texture. This traditional English cheese is a variation of the Double Gloucester cheese. Here’s how you can make your own Cotswold cheese.

Yield

Approximately 900 g Cotswold cheese

Aging Time

less than 3 months

Ingredients

8 L whole milk (don’t use ultra pasteurized milk)

1/8 teaspoon Bioprox M265 Mesophilic Culture

1/8 teaspoon Calcium Chloride (dissolved in ¼ cup non-chlorinated water)- add only if you are using pasteurized milk)

¾ teaspoon liquid rennet (diluted in ¼ cup non chlorinated water)

1 ½ tablespoon cheese salt

4 drops annatto liquid (diluted in ¼ cup non chlorinated water)

1 ½ teaspoon dried chives

 1 ½ teaspoon dried onions

Equipment

Large stainless pot

Thermometer

Spoon or ladle

Knife and curd cutter

Colander

Cheese cloth or butter muslin

Cheese hoops

Draining mat

Cheese press

Instructions

Reminder: Sterilize all your equipment before making cheese.

1. Heat the milk to 32⁰ C.

2. Sprinkle the mesophilic culture on the milk’s surface. Allow the culture to rehydrate for 5 minutes. 3. Thoroughly mix the culture with the milk by stirring in an up- down motion for a minute.

3. Cover the pot and leave the milk to ripen for 45 minutes. Be sure the target temperature remains steady.

4. Gently stir the milk for 30 seconds. Add the annatto solution as you continue to stir. This gives the cheese a dark yellow color.

5. Add the Calcium Chloride solution. Continue to stir for about 1 minute.

6. Add the rennet. Stir again for another 1 minute.

7. Cover the pot again and allow the milk to set for 45 minutes or until you get a clean break. Keep the 32⁰ C temperature steady.

8. Once you have a clean break, cut the curds into ¼ inch cubes.

9. Leave the curds to heal for 5 minutes.

10. After the curds have healed, gently stir it for 20 minutes while maintaining the 32⁰ C temperature. After 20 minutes, you will notice that the curds have shrunk a bit.

11. Gradually raise the temperature to 40⁰ C (increase the temperature by 1⁰ C every 4 to 5 minutes) over a 35 minute period while continuously stirring.

12. Once you reach the target temperature, remove the heat. Stir for another 30 minutes.

13. Allow the curds to settle for 5 minutes.

14. Line the colander with cheesecloth or butter muslin. Pour the curds into the colander and drain for 5 minutes. You’ll notice that the curds have formed into a soft slab.

15. Put the curds back into the pot.

16. Break the curds into ½ inch sized pieces.

17. Add the salt and mill it into the curds.

18. Add the dried and onions. Gently but thoroughly mix.

19. Line the cheese hoop with cheese cloth or butter muslin. Scoop the curds into the hoop.

20. Press the cheese at a pressure of 5 kg for 15 minutes.

21. Remove the cheese from the press. Turn it over. Wrap and put it back in the cheese hoop. Press the cheese at a pressure of 15 kg for another 15 minutes.

22. Remove the cheese once again. Turn it over, redress and press at a 20 kg pressure for 2 hours.

23. Turn the cheese over again. Press at 23 kg for 24 hours.

24. Transfer the cheese on a draining mat and air dry for 2 days.

25. Wax or vacuum seal the Cotswold. Mature at a temperature of 13⁰ C for 1 to 3 months, turning the cheese over once a week.

Available Dairy Processing Equipment

Milk Pasteurizer

A milk pasteuriser with a chiller and heating with electrical heaters up to 100° C  and as well as air cooled heat exchanger for cooling down to 4°C with cooling aggregate.
Separate heating / cooling unit.
Available Volume: 50 L, 100 L, and 200 L

Cheese Vat

Cheese kettle vat it’s perfect for small artisan cheese factory’s or dairy processors. Comes in various sizes from 100 ltr up to 1,500 ltr square or round.

Brine Tank

Tank is fitted with
• 3 x 9KW heating elements (total 27KW)
made of 304 or 316 (marine grade stainless)
circulation pump
large 3″ butterfly valve
set of food grade wheels
double or single lid
may be fitted with agitator if required

Cheese Kettle supplies cheese making equipment and ingredients, from starter cultures, cheese hoops and cheese paper to machineries like pasteurizers and cheese vats and butter churners. We can even customize our equipment based on your dairy processing needs. Talk to one of our experts. Contact us today!