This Month's Featured Cheeses - August 2010
Please Note: Although we will make every attempt to ship the products listed, occasionally we may need to substitute them with equally outstanding cheeses. If you strongly desire to receive those listed, please contact us at 800-625-8238 so that we may note your account accordingly.(The product descriptions below are excerpts from our monthly newsletter. Click here to view it in its entirety.)
Italian Cheeses—Now that's Amore!
Where would the world's cooking and cuisine be without the luxurious and decadent cheeses of Italy? From pizza to pasta, the world relies heavily on the artisan cheeses produced and imported from Italy where good times and good food are synonymous. Italy’s cheeses symbolize the best of both. You can be sure the Italians are spending a good deal of this typical vacation month sampling the excellent local vino and pairing it with wonderful, flavorful cheeses. So this month we invite you to do likewise by celebrating summer with three exotic Italian cheeses—two from Italy and one made in the good ol’ U.S.A.
This month’s selections are: SarVecchio Parmesan, Montasio, and Pecorino Toscano. Salut!
SarVecchio Parmesan
With typical American pride, the first cheese we’re featuring this month is a parmesan cheese that, in 2009, was named the number one cheese produced in the U.S. (out of 1,336 entries) at the largest, longest-running cheese competition in the U.S. The United States Championship Cheese Contest goes back to the 1890s. SarVecchio Parmesan was named not just the best parmesan but the best of 64 different classes of cheeses and butters, including bries, blues, cheddars, muensters and more. SarVecchio has won many other awards. The cheese enjoyed a first place finish in the hard-grating cheese category at the prestigious 2007 American Cheese Society annual competition, which showcases the leaders in the burgeoning world of American artisan cheese.
SarVecchio is made by Master Cheesemaker Larry Steckbauer at Sartori Foods in Antigo, Wisconsin. Certified in Parmesan and Romano cheeses, Larry has refined his cheesemaking skills during a career that began in his hometown of Antigo thirty-five years ago. Sartori has local “patron farmers” who partner with them by supplying milk for their award-winning artisan cheeses. Many of them own family farms that have supplied Satori with milk for over 70 years. Milk destined to be SarVecchio never travels far from farm to cheesemaker.
SarVecchio Parmesan follows in the tradition of the greatest cheese of Italy. It’s washed with olive oil and is then "extra-aged" – for at least 20 months. The result is an outstanding cheese with a crumbly texture and a salty, sweet and nutty flavor, interspersed with crystals that give it a bit of a crunch. These crystals, a product of the aging process, are found in many aged hard cheeses, giving them the name "grana" (grainy) cheeses. The interior is light gold interior, and the rind a slightly darker cream color.
Tasting Notes: This extraordinary Parmesan has a mellow flavor that’s distinctively fruity with lighter notes of roasted caramel. While delicious grated into soup or sprinkled on pasta, polenta, or a Caesar salad, a parmesan of this caliber warrants being consumed solo. Literally. You may just want to cut pieces and consume. Or try SarVecchio with a baguette. Serve it with slices of fennel, thinly cut celery or black olives. For a simple and elegant dessert, consider drizzling it with honey and partnering it with dried figs, red grapes or pecans. Or enjoy it with squares of bittersweet, dark chocolate.
Montasio – God Bless Those Benedictine Monks
Our first featured native Italian cheese, Montasio, derives its name from the Montasio mountain range in the Friuli region north of Venice in Italy. It was originally produced in the 13th century by Benedictine monks at their monastery in the Giulia Alps. Today, Montasio is widely produced throughout the Friuli region in the northeast corner of Italy. It’s made, of course, in compliance with precise requirements. The production area is limited to Friuli and East Veneto in the provinces of Belluno and Treviso, and to some areas of Padua and the Venetian provinces. But the wonderful characteristics of this product that date back to those industrious monks have been preserved for all to enjoy.
The branding of the cheese with the trademark of the Consorzio per la Tutela del Formaggio Montasio (Consortium for the Protection of Montasio Cheese) guarantees its origin, as well as compliance with all the characteristics stipulated in the production regulations. The Montasio consortium's trademark is stamped on the upper crust. This assures that quality methods and traditions have been met. Though originally produced with sheep’s milk, it’s now made with fresh cow's milk and the progressive transformation process is closely monitored.
Montasio is enjoyed by all ages because it is so easy to digest and, therefore, is especially suitable for children and elderly people. It's always delicious whatever its age. Montasio is great when it's still fresh, as well as after maturing for only two months. It's scrumptious when it has matured from five to ten months, and it's everyone's favorite when it has achieved full maturity after ten or more months.
Tasting Notes: When the cheese is fresh, the taste is mild and delicate, and the color is white. The texture is compact with an even oscillation, and the rind is smooth and flexible. As the cheese matures, it becomes grainy and crumbly, and the rind dries and darkens. Its flavor becomes mellow and fruity with a full-flavored finish, and its color slowly turns to a pale, straw-yellow. Typically, you will find this cheese served as an eating cheese with crusty bread. You can also shred it on pasta dishes, serve it in omelets, or use it to make sauces and fondue.
Pecorino Toscano – A Gift from Tuscany
Pecorino Toscano was granted its DOC protection on May 17, 1986. It can be made in Tuscany and the neighboring communities of Umbria and Latium. In Tuscany, Pecorino is never referred to as formaggio, but rather as cacio, which was adapted from the Latin word caseus. The German word kase and the English word cheese were also derived from this ancient Latin word.
This sheep’s milk cheese is considerably milder than Pecorino Romano and is Tuscany’s most extensive DOC product. Until recently the name Pecorino Toscano was given to any cheese made in Tuscany from ewe's milk (pecorino is the Italian word for sheep), although sometimes it was mixed with cow's or goat's milk. The name is now reserved for pure ewe's milk cheeses made between September and June. Pecorino Toscano cheeses are smaller and milder than the other Pecorinos (Romano and Sardo), and may be sold soft and fresh (with a yellow rind) or firm and ripened for a few months (with brown-red rind).
This is no ordinary cheese. Pecorino of Tuscany is famous in the cheese world, since just about every village in Tuscany makes its own unique rendition—all based on the same recipe! You might think some would be better than others, but the Tuscans love their Pecorino and they claim that each one is equally delicious… just a little different.
Savory and fragrant grasses which vary from farm to farm contribute to each version's unique taste. So does each farmer's interpretation of the basic recipe. Milking takes place just once a day and the cheeses are made using unpasteurized milk. They are then ripened in a damp environment—at about 10°C—from forty days to more than six months.
Most Pecorinos are oily cheeses (about 45% fat) because ewe's milk contains very high amounts of butterfat, which is one reason this cheese is so scrumptious. When your Pecorino comes to room temperature, don't be surprised if you see beads of oil on the cheese. Called "butterfat tears," they weep naturally from this cheese, indicating it's the perfect temperature for eating.
Tasting Notes: Toscano can, of course, be used as an ingredient in cooking. It's also an excellent addition to any cheese board. Although it's usually eaten as a table cheese, try it shaved on top of fresh beans, summer salads, or lightly sautéed greens. Use it instead of Parmigiano on your next bowl of pasta. Its flavor is dense and nutty with a wonderful rustic finish.
