Ripening
The change of a young curd into a finished cheese through slow chemical and microbial work.
Also: ageing, maturing, curing, stagionatura
Ripening is everything that happens inside a cheese after it is made. Lactic bacteria use up the last sugar; enzymes from rennet, milk, bacteria and moulds break down protein and fat; salt spreads through; water slowly leaves. The result is a change in texture, from rubbery to supple, creamy or flaky, and in flavour, from milky and plain to nutty, savoury, sharp or pungent. Ripening can take days for a soft goat cheese or years for an old Gouda or Parmigiano, and depends greatly on cellar temperature and humidity. Cheeses that ripen from the rind inwards differ from those that ripen evenly throughout. Fresh cheeses such as paneer are not ripened at all.