Harvesting Beurre Bosc Pears, Gardens Prepped for Autumn, Dragon Fruit

Two weeks ago after looking up the Vintage Book to see when we have  harvested the Beurre Bosc in previous years I tested a pear for sugar. It came in at 15 Brix. The records showed that we normally harvest about the 19th February and that the sugar levels were 15 Brix. With the fruit hanging well we agreed to leave it on the tree a little longer. Another sample today showed 21 Brix. Probably an abnormally high reading pear but high enough to assume that it won't go much further.

The fruit harvested was in excellent shape varying in size from small tom exceedingly large. This dry weather Summer has really produced some incredible fruit in the Orchard. The haul came in at just over 36 kilograms. In previous years the harvest has been so small we never even bothered to weigh the result.

Tomorrow after the morning Bee club meet the bulk of the fruit will be processed through the scratter and fermented into Perry. We are currently working our way through two Blue cheeses, a Stilton and a Roquefort. Slices of pear go nicely.

The garden continued to receive attention with the final vegetable bed being cleared of Summer weeds. A little compost spread over it and a coating of Lucerne mulch with a good wetting. It feels great to have prepared all the beds ahead of Autumn making it so easier to slowly plant out new seeds and seedlings. As soon as the temperature is right we'll sow some green manure crops on some sections. In todays bed as an experiment we tried to avoid disturbing the soil. No forking over or removing roots just surface weeding.

Some of the weeds including massive Parsley plants gone to seed

We at Dragon Fruit after dinner.

It looks like a bowl of Ice Cream

Wine Making with Chardonnay

Most of today was spent working on the three batches of Chardonnay.

Batch 1 (B1) was pretty straightforward. It was all juice and the only job this morning after leaving overnight to chill down to below 10 C was to run it through another finer sieve. There was a lot of sediment in the bottom of the demijohn which was added to B2. I didn't bother filtering it as B1 was at the 10 litre mark and it didn't need any more volume.

B3 was still in the freezer at 10 C it will be 2 am tomorrow morning before it reaches 36 hours on skins. Having worked out that it meant getting out of bed there was some thought about doing it later today and making the test closer to 24 hours or leaving it until normal wake up time and making it 40 + hours. We will see what happens.

B2 needed pressing in the basket press. As there were other jobs to do elsewhere it was an ideal opportunity to do the right kind of pressing i.e. very slow. This slow method means less of the bitter parts of the skin are released. So all day it was just a few clicks on the handle of the press using just finger tip pressure.

As the juice came out and the pressure relieved it was onto the other tasks. Measuring out the yeast getting it ready to rehydrate. A sample of juice s raised to between 35 and 38 C and the yeast added. Once it has started bubbling the temperature is lowered with cold juice a little at a time and the yeast allowed to bubble again. Never more than a 10 C change in any one step. Once the yeast is working at a temperature within 10 degrees of the pressed juice it is added. The slow pressing meant the pressed juice was gradually rising in temperature and it need to be at or above the planned fermentation temperature of 15 C.

Also tested was the pH which came in at 3.55. The ideal pH is between 3 and 3.5. Aim was taken at the midpoint t3.25. To get there Tartaric Acid the largest acid type in grapes needed adding. There is a simple formula to achieve the desired result. After checking and double checking the calculations the acid was stirred into the demijohn. The calculation is a little tricky for B2 as the grapes are still being pressed and the final volume is only an estimate based on previous years yields. But by choosing a mid point there is some wiggle room.

When B1 started fermenting comfortably it went into the freezer at 15 C. B2 because of the much larger volume will not see much activity until the early hours of tomorrow morning.

Measuring out the yeast required

pH meter

Getting some juice at the correct temperature to rehydrate the yeast

Pressing Chardonnay B2

While waiting between applications of more pressure other jobs got some attention including a few trips across the river to setup and then fix an irrigator that was playing up. And which continued to play up. At least one patch of ground got a very good watering.

And the baby Roquefort needed the final application of salt.

Weigh each cheese and calculate the 2% salt and pour on top

Five little Roquefort altogether

Just after lunch confirmation was received that the Pinot Noir would be ready for picking on Monday next. This meant tomorrow (Friday) was free - well sort of.

 Our Chambourcin was close to picking. A couple of rows had readings of 21 Brix but lower down the slope the readings went much higher varying between 23 and 25. The aim was to get a final Brix of 23 to 24 if possible.

With the windfall spare day it was decided to pick at least the ripest rows and chill the fruit. Jean reminded me that our thermometer was showing 42 C. Much higher than the forecast.

Slow and steady picking and lots of water and breaks resulted in all but one row being harvested. The volume is greater than last year by about 20%. We can put that down to two factors. The first is the near absence of bird damage. The lack of bird damage was also mentioned when the Chardonnay was picked. This seems a valley wide phenomena this vintage.

The second factor is just a perfect season. Steady sunshine, good flowering and fruit set and a little added water at the appropriate times. Some vines had lovely full bunches. Something we don't often get at HHF on our rocky outcrop.

One last increase of pressure on the ongoing B2 and off to bed. Lets see whether passion for wine making will see a 2 am rising.

New Bed for Cabbages, Roquefort, Straying calves

Just the usual morning run through the herds. Another patch of luscious green grass for the cows and calves next door. The seven on the river are fine, no more births. Across the river the weaners went into a new paddock and were topped up with silage while their mothers received more silage but had produced no more babies.

Up on the hill one of the newest babies was on the wrong side of the fence right on the crest of the hill while it's mother was down the bottom of the hill. We both went up in the farm's 4WD, tackled the little heifer, tied its back legs and nursed it in the passenger seat for a trip down the hill. Mum was pleased to see it and it was pleased to see mum and thirsty. A bit disappointing that mum showed no signs of distress despite being separated for almost 24 hours. Will need to keep on eye on this pair.


Today's main job was to chop up a patch of green manure and dig it in to make a rich bed for some Cabbage seedlings that had been growing out. Since there had a freshly matured compost available, two barrow loads of it went into the bed as well. This bed has no netting over it and up went a temporary barrier against any rogue poultry.

Green Manure Crop

 

Green Manure all Chopped

The Roquefort in progress, now dry salted needed its holes punched. Some were done top to bottom and some rounds were done from side to side. The recommendation is that cheeses need to be stored on their sides. This is so the holes can have air circulating through them to promote blue mould growth. The experiment here is to punch holes from side to side enabling the cheeses to be stored flat side down which is easier on these small rounds. he guidelines also have the cheeses wrapped at this stage to finish maturing. Once stacked the tray is stored in a plastic bag for maturation in the cheese fridge. The stainless steel trays were very cheap and obviously of poor quality as rust patches have formed.

Roquefort Pierced and Wrapped

Over the river the paddock that had just been emptied of calves was harrowed and being late afternoon a final check of the herd showed a freshly born calf. So that's 3 out of 25 after 2 weeks into the 9 week birthing period. A slow start.

Being Friday its Fish and Chips. Finally some of our potatoes are ready and we have enjoy fresh potato chips - delicious.

Salting, Fencing and Fasting

Babies everywhere this morning. The Blue tagged girl from the 7 cows on the river finally calved. I was getting a bit worried and have been carrying the calf puller in the back of the ute for a few days. A new baby appeared on hill next door. There are 16 Springers there, hopefully they will start popping out. Nothing new over the river in that 25.This slow start is painful.

Blue Tag's baby - pretty fresh

And up on the hill a newby

Calf Puller strapped in

Being a fast day I started with a strong coffee with almost no milk - bloody awful. The rest of the day included a coupe of cups of weak miso soup. The hunger pangs disappeared after 2pm. by 5pm didn't even feel as if I hadn't eaten. The body must be getting into the routine.

Salted the Roquefort this morning. The small rounds went into a 20% brine for 90 minutes and the larger rounds received a layer of salt equal to 2% of their weight. Will add another 1 to 1.5% onto their other side when the first application has dissolved. Previously one application of 4.1% was used but found it a bit salty. Doing two applications will also allow a taste test before committing. The small rounds were allowed to dry overnight before going into the cheese fridge.

2% by weight salt

Rode the push bike over the river and spent 4 hours fencing. Only two holes will need to be either barred out or jack hammered the rest were fine and the posts were stood. The westerly wing was up and there was a bit of waiting for the string line to settle down but eventually it all went well. It looks pretty good. These round plastic fence posts certainly take a little more effort to get a good visual look but at least they aren't as heavy as the wooden posts. One fencer I worked had great eyesight and we never needed a string line. He'd direct me as I held a steel post and I'd mark the ground accordingly - a hell of a lot quicker than rolling out string in the wind.

Straight Line

Camembert and Roquefort

Camembert is relatively easy to make. Said after ten years experience and a fair share of mistakes and failures. But after a while you get into a groove and it becomes second nature. The important thing is to keep trying and take notes on each cheese. Each cheese we make has a Cheese Making Note that stays on the Cheese refrigerator until the cheese is consumed. Any special useful changes are added to the cheese making book as margin notes e.g. length of brining on small Camembert rounds. We use the Cheeselinks book for most of our cheeses and both the Normandy Camembert and Brie recipes make excellent small rounds.

Roquefort is a different matter. Having found real Roquefort in a small supermarket in nearby Gloucester NSW it became an imperative to attempt to replicate the texture and flavour. The initial challenge was not having Sheep's milk. Raw cow's milk was the only option. The research indicated that a higher fat level was required and this was achieved by adding back cream skimmed from a larger quantity of milk. All the other processes such as starters, timings for each stage, salting and aging were accumulated from various cheese books and then the experimenting started.

The end result is a very creamy, bluey cheese which is nothing like Roquefort in texture and flavour. However what has resulted is a great blue which has now become a staple. The experimentation will continue but without Sheep's milk we can only dream.

Camembert in its Humidifier

Roquefort in Cheese Wrap stored on edge to allow maximum airflow through holes
 

Partially Aged Roqufort

Roquefort Recipe

% Moisture 42.44 % Fat 29 % Protein 20 % Salt 4.1

Temperature 30 C pH 6.5

Cheeselinks Cultures B&C i.e. Lactococcus Lactis, Lactococcus Cremoris, Leuconostoc, Streptococcus Thermopilus, Lactobacillus Delbreukii Bulgaricus

Rennet 5 ml/20 L

Set for 2-2 1/2 hours
Curd cut 1-3 cm
Stir 2-5 times over 40-60 mins
Drain to Curd depth and fill hoops
No Pressing
Drain 2-3 days turning regularly
Dry Salt 4.1% of Curd weight
Ripen at 8- 10 C for 18-25 days
Pierce holes
Wrap
Stack on sides
5-10 months at 1 C (or 8-10 C for quicker ripening)


Cheese Refrigerator - Bottom Shelves: Haloumi and Fetta, Middle Shelves: Camembert and Roquefort in Humidifiers, Top Shelf: Cheddars and  Havarti, Door: Parmesans.