So I’m relieved to have finally been able to answer a question, albeit a small one in our Cheese Chemistry class today. Nothing Earth shattering about knowing (finally, after six days in class) that the level of calcium is in direct correlation to the level of pH in our milk, our cheese.
I love this. I feel nerdy. I’ve been forgiven by my classmates for asking the all-time dumbest question in class which was on day three and went something like, “So, can I go in to my creamery each day, measure out all my “ingredients’” (ouch. I caution you … never, never refer to making cheese as following a recipe!), “you know things like my milk, starter cultures, rennet. Then get all my gear out – my tools like my scale, beakers, knives, pH meter, hoops… and well, simply just follow the method to get to the final product; the cheese I want to make that day?”
Can you hear them? The murmurs in the back of the classroom. The small snorts out of my classmates’ nostrils as they try to comprehend how anyone can be so stupid (and then, publicly display that stupidity). It actually smarted.
What can I say? I go into my office every day and start my computer. Look at my To Do list. Make phone calls. Create copy, ads, brochures. Check budget numbers. Fill in report data. Isn’t making cheese sort of the same thing?
I must remind myself that there is some artistry to making cheese. So, the good news today is I answered a question CORRECTLY. The bad news is I answered many, many more incorrectly over the week and a half that I’ve been here.
I’m just happy that I’ve learned something.
Originally Posted on October 3, 2011 on The Little Bleu Cheese Shop Web Site