Editing Cheesemaking (section)

=== Ancient cheesemaking ===
One of the ancient cheesemakers' earliest tools for cheesemaking, cheese molds or strainers, can be found throughout [[Europe]], dating back to the [[Bronze Age]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=Global Cheesemaking Technology: Cheese Quality and Characteristics|last=Papademas|first=Photis|editor2-first=Thomas|editor2-last=Bintsis|editor1-first=Photis|editor1-last=Papademas|publisher=Wiley|year=2018|isbn=9781119046158|location=Hoboken, New Jersey|doi=10.1002/9781119046165}}</ref> Baskets were used to separate the cheese curds, but as technology advanced, these cheese molds would be made of wood or pottery. The cheesemakers placed the cheese curds inside of the mold, secured the mold with a lid, then added pressure to separate the whey, which would drain out from the holes in the mold. The more whey that was drained, the less moisture retained in the cheese. Less moisture meant that the cheese would be firmer. In [[Ireland]], some cheeses ranged from a dry and hard cheese (mullahawn) to a semi-liquid cheese (millsén).<ref>{{Cite journal|last=O'Sullivan|first=Muiris|date=Winter 2018|title=Cheese-Making |url=https://web.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=4&sid=185c6eae-4c10-4456-a64e-df3db7afe974%40pdc-v-sessmgr06|journal=Archaeology Ireland|volume=32}}{{Dead link|date=July 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

The designs and patterns were often used to decorate the cheeses and differentiate between them. Since many monastic establishments and abbeys owned their share of milk animals at the time, it was commonplace for the cheeses they produced to bear a cross in the middle.

Although the common perception of cheese today is made from cow's milk, goat's milk was actually the preferred base of ancient cheesemakers, because goats are smaller animals than cows. This meant that goats required less food and were easier to transport and herd. Moreover, goats can breed any time of the year as opposed to sheep, who also produce milk, but mating season only came around during fall and winter.

Before the age of pasteurization, cheesemakers knew that certain cheeses could cause constipation or kidney stones, so they advised their customers to supplement these side effects by eating in moderation along with other foods and consuming walnuts, almonds, or horseradish.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Forgotten Harvest: The Story of Cheesemaking in Wiltshire|last=Wilson|first=Avice R.|publisher=Cromwell Press|year=1995|isbn=0952654407|location=Britain|pages=32}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=The Cheeses of Italy : Science and Technology|last=Gobbetti|first=Marco|publisher=Springer, Cham|year=2018|isbn=978-3-319-89853-7|doi=10.1007/978-3-319-89854-4|s2cid=44128087}}</ref>