Cheese ripening the cheese by fungi to occur. Mould-ripened cheeses ripen faster than hard cheeses, in weeks as opposed to the typical months or even years. This is because the fungi used are more biochemically active than the starter bacteria. Where the ripening occurs is largely dependent on the type of cheese: some cheeses are surface-ripened by moulds, such as Camembert and Brie; and some are ripened internally, such as Stilton. Surface ripening of some cheeses, such as Saint-Nectaire cheese, may also be influenced by yeasts which contribute flavour and coat texture. Others are allowed by the cheesemaker to develop bacterial surface
Cheeses of Mexico While a number of cheeses are made with goats’ milk, they are not as popular and have gotten more difficult to find in markets. Shepherding, though, historically has never been a major commercial activity nationwide, efforts to since the 1980s to promote sheep milk and meat have resulted in a significant rise in the number of sheep being raised. This is promoting the development of sheep’s milk cheese in the country, although it still accounts for a very small percentage. One of the major sheep-producing states is Querétaro, with most of the milk destined for cheesemaking. Most “fresh” cheeses, unlike