Influence of starter culture to sensory quality of edam cheese during ripening

Abstract

In the study were evaluated the Edam cheeses with fat content 30% and 45% w/w produced by two dairies (A, B) using two different starter cultures YY and LL during five months ripening. The effect of ripening was related to the texture of Edam, so as to determine the optimum ripening time. The ripening time had significant effect on sensory characteristics of the Edam cheese. The first three months were ripening cheese with 30% fat in dry matter evaluated much like cheese with 45% fat in dry matter, but in the following months of aging is already evident that with the starter culture LL cheeses were evaluated as taste pleasant. Both starter cultures produced an increase in the bitter taste of the cheeses after 3 months of ripening. However, cheeses with YY starter culture gradually lost bitterness during ripening, while for cheeses with LL starter culture the intensity of the bitter taste increased during ripening. These results were statistically significant. Increasing bitter taste formation excludes the possibility of using YY starter culture to make Edam cheese with a maturation period of more than 3 months.