Diary of a novice cheese maker

 Diary of a novice cheese maker

Diary of a cheese maker by Bill Poindexter

Day one: I love this cheese making- just sounds romantic doesn’t it, head down to our monastery in Provence or perhaps Spain or perhaps somewhere amongst the vineyards in California, or perhaps even on the island of Martha’s Vineyard Massachusetts in the quiet town of Chilmark Massachusetts on the farm called Mermaid number 9 Middle Rd.. That’s where I’ve landed myself for the summer a resident field hand and cheese maker or so I thought. The first day I became an apprentice yogurt maker. One of the things Mermaid Farm is known for is there a quality yogurt and Lassi. Being a novice cheese maker as well as a Novice yogurt make (50 gallons of yogurt) I’m not even gonna try to define anything for you until I learned about it all I know the basic says I’m sure you do. But there’s more here than just yogurt and cheese making there’s order taking there’s cleaning there’s production schedules this farm like many other small farm operations is dysfunctional to say the least but I don’t mean that in a negative way. I haven’t found my way here yet. Yesterday was really my first day although I’ve been here since Friday and I’m living off the property at one of the owners properties in a small cottage in a wooded area which is very nice and very rustic. We decided that it would be better if I didn’t live on the property as there’s really no housing I would just be living in a tent or possibly in a chicken coop. And I don’t mind living in a tent but the younger folks who live on the property especially the one of the sons tends to have friends over with loud music and a bit of parting as marijuana is legal on the island. And Bill Poindexter needs to sleep. So just to let you know how dysfunctional my current situation is there doesn’t seem to be any formal training. But again today will be the second day. I tried to take a couple of training manuals but got reprimanded for that because people have taken them and they become lost. I understand that but the question is how am I supposed to learn to make cheese and everything else today produce if I don’t have a training manual to support that that I can take home with me? I have initiative but if I can’t use initiative what’s going to happen. So what do I do not take it? No of course I’m gonna take it -I have to learn how to do this I’m here to learn how to make cheese I’m a novice cheese maker. I don’t care if you don’t want to train me I’m gonna learn how to make cheese anyway. Actually I know how to make cheese I was teaching people in Kansas City how to make cheese before I even left Kansas City. Although a very simple cheese -mozzarella and dabbling in French farm cheese. I can make that cheese and if I can make that I can make any kind . Everything else is just a formality steps. But cheese making as I’ve been reading depending on the type of cheese you’re making it’s a bit of a chemistry class as well to find the right pH balance your salting doing things with Brine. No you just have to get those right temperatures in a place for that milk to separate using various chemicals for the separation well I don’t know if chemicals is right term and sounds kind of like I don’t know -not good. But today we’re supposed to make another cheese I think feta maybe I hope so. Anyway it’s getting close to 6 AM need a ride my bike to the beach and go for a walk it’s gonna be a perfect day they were thunderstorms last night and it’s completely sunny today I was able to watch the full moon crest below the most been the western horizon Southwest Verizon this morning. Always had trouble with my directions on the island. I could sit here getting amped up on coffee for hours and tell you more of the dysfunctionality but truth be told I’m very dysfunctional myself I’m somewhat dyslexic have attention deficit disorder I am a extreme procrastinator I don’t like reading directions I like being shown what to do and get my hands on it so I can conceptually understand what it is I’m doing and why I’m doing it and what the ultimate outcome is. It’s just the way I work I’m not nervous about this adventure I’m here to work so if it means sweeping floors, pulling weeds and stocking shelves, and taking orders making yogurt and make a lot of cheese well then I’m the Guy. Didn’t want to say I did meet all the staff and the two sons who are teenagers of the owners and I have to say I really like everybody. The owners, Who I like very much,are talking about me managing everybody and I could see that happening but right now day two I just want to make some cheese. I mean heck- this is the diary of a novice cheese maker. Peace and love Bill Poindexter