Cheese Making Workshop - Successful Aging $580
Description
This workshop provides cheese makers with an in depth understanding of cultures and mold development for successful aging (Affinage). 

From home cheese makers and small farmsteads to chefs and cheese lovers this is a great way to learn how to make and age a fabulous range of semi-soft and hard cheese.
Beginning with raw materials, milk, culture and rennet we'll talk about their roles while moving through the individual cheese making steps three different types of cheese. Each of the three cheeses has been chosen to ideally demonstrate varying aging techniques.
For over two decades Jim Wallace has been developing cheese making guidelines, answering questions, and studying cheese making at home and abroad. During this workshop Jim will welcome you into his cheese lab and aging cellar where he will teach you both cheese making the art of affinage.
Course Includes
- Two day class from 9:00am to 4:00pm
- Tasting/discussing styles of surface preparations for aging
- A sampling of Jim’s wine/beer creations
- Delicious lunch each day
- 
Saturday | An array of rind preparations
- 
Sunday | Bring your own cheese for evaluation/discussion
- Natural rind | Manchego or traditional Tomme
- Washed rind | Reblochon or Taleggio
- Mold ripened | Lactic Goat, Robiola or Crescenza style
Topics Covered
- Equipment and tools needed for developing your cheese for aging
- 
 Space requirements for setting up your own aging space
- 
 Waxing vs preparing for Natural Rinds
- 
 Salt application and how it changes the rind development
- 
 Types of culture and molds, their characteristics, and how to get them working through surface development and aging
- 
 Monitoring and controlling the process by observational methods as well as pH and acid titration
- 
 Natural rind development and other surface protective options
- 
 Aging conditions for natural rinds and how to set up and maintain a simple cave
Specific cheeses in groups above may vary according to what attendees requests are.
Types of cheese
If you have taken our 201 cheese making class, or have already started making cheese at home and would like to improve your craft, Jim will lead you there during this class. This is a two day workshop focusing on the making and aging.
 Each day runs from 9am-4pm on both Saturday and Sunday.
This workshop is for anyone who wants to improve their cheese making skills, learning to make a range of fabulous semi-soft and hard cheeses. Whether you are a home cheese maker, small farmstead, or chef wanting to improve your knowledge of cheesemaking.
In addition to the the How and Why way of making a cheese this Class goes deeper into aging options, focusing on the cultures (yeast/bacteria/molds), process, and most importantly the care and feeding of cheese in the aging room (Affinage) that takes your efforts to the perfect degree of ripeness, including:
- Developing and maintaining the proper moisture/temperature to develop a good rind
- Post pressing care
- Monitoring and encouraging the surface development or brushing/washing rinds to keep them clean
- Determining when they reach the final development
- Troubleshooting when things go wrong
At the end of the two days, Jim will have taken you through these processes while making these very different cheeses so that you will be prepared for the perfect aging, plus you will have tasted a lot of really great cheese and a really great information packed weekend.
From this class you will have the background to move ahead into aging many of the delicious cheeses you aspire to make.
Details
This workshop is for anyone who wants to improve their cheese making skills, learning to make a range of fabulous semi-soft and hard cheeses. Whether you are a home cheese maker, small farmstead, or chef wanting to improve your knowledge of cheesemaking.
In addition to the the How and Why way of making a cheese this Class goes deeper into aging options, focusing on the cultures (yeast/bacteria/molds), process, and most importantly the care and feeding of cheese in the aging room (Affinage) that takes your efforts to the perfect degree of ripeness, including:
-Developing and maintaining the proper moisture/temperature to develop a good rind.
-Post pressing care.
-Monitoring and encouraging the surface development or brushing/washing rinds to keep them clean.
-Determining when they reach the final development.
Troubleshooting when things go wrong.
At the end of the two days, Jim will have taken you through these processes while making these very different cheeses so that you will be prepared for the perfect aging, plus you will have tasted a lot of really great cheese and a really great information packed weekend.
From this class you will have the background to move ahead into aging many of the delicious cheeses you aspire to make.
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JamaicaNot what I expected, but had some value
I am new to aging of cheese and was clearly the novice in the group. I was hoping for an understanding and practical experience with the Workshop items noted as 'Topics to be Covered"in the Workshop outline. I did not expect the majority of the time we would be observing cheese being made. I realize this was of interest to many present, but I had expected the majority of time to focus on aging cheese. If I were to reconfigure the class I would have cheeses already made at different aging/drying stages ready to be discussed. And, perhaps some 'practice w the techniques referenced. Problems one might face could be seen and discussed. The opportunity to understand different molds and see them would have been helpful. Despite these significant frustrations, the Workshop was helpful because class members were helpful to me. All participants were very supportive & Jim tried to meet everyone's needs.
United StatesSuccessful Aging - Great People, Great Experience, and Great Cheese
This was my second trip to Shelburne Falls to attend one of Jim's cheese classes and I must say it's such a learning experience along with all the great side benefits of meeting cheesemakes from around the country and world, tasting many great cheeses (student and teacher), sampling many great fermentation products besides Jim's wonderful cheeses like his homemade beer, wine, and hard cider and enjoying the conversation and hospitality of Jim's wife Robin. Although this class focussed on the aging and ripening or cheese affinage, Jim still made a number of cheeses and discussed the many facets of cheese making. Students are given recipe guidelines but come to realize that cheesemaking is as much an art as it is a science. Learning to read the cheese pot from acidification to coagulation, to cutting, drying, molding, salting and finishing your creations in your aging space. If you love cheese and all the challenges associated with cheese making this class is for you.
United StatesExcellent advanced cheese making workshop
Excellent workshop by a great teacher. It is a such a beautiful setup to come and learn from the master Jim Wallace in his own cheese making cellar (truly Fermentation Central!). This workshop is really meant for those who have done quite a few cheeses, some better and some less, and want to deepen their skills and knowledge around the process. While it is a lot about the aging (affinage) process, Jim made it very clear that every step is important is important and explained how different decision points along the process affect the resulting cheese. The combination of going through the detailed making of 3 different cheeses - each demonstrating different style and providing Jim and the group an opportunity to delve into different aspects of the cheese making and then affinage. It was great to meet and learn from challenges and best practices of fellow cheese makers, as well as test and taste their sample cheeses while receiving great critique and guidance from Jim. Overall - highly recommended and looking forward to join another advanced cheese making workshop.
United StatesExcellent
This workshop was very enjoyable and informative. I liked the informal lecture style combined with actual cheesemaking at Jim's "mad cheese scientist" cellar/cheese cave. The lunches and the hospitality were a big plus ( thank you Robin) along with the local accommodations and the sights and sounds of the area. We had an enthusiastic group with many laughs and good questions (and answers). Maybe add a 1/2 day field trip to a local dairy to talk with some cows!
United StatesSuccessful Aging Workshop
As always, I thought the class was excellent. Jim Wallace is such an amazing source of knowledge relating to cheesemaking. I guess my only comment is that for this class everyone seemed to have had a decent amount of experience making some cheeses. I think may be this type of class could have made two cheeses and use the additional time for discussions on troubleshooting problems, slideshows, question and answer topics etc. I know a lot of times questions and helpful hints came up while watching the cheeses being made, but again may be two cheeses instead of three would have still sufficed. Overall, an outstanding experience and I'm looking forward to the next one. Thanks again Joe