Last week I purchased an item at the supermarket chain Safeway called 'Italian Cheese Board'. Not that it was particularly fancy, but they were very tasty cheeses; four little stacks of northern cheeses which are well known in America, stacked on top of a hard waxed cardboard backing. There are other cheeses a bit off the beaten path of course, but I thought it significant that these four are so well-known worldwide. Of course Parmesan--originating from Emilia and Lombardia--would be the equivalent to Swiss, feta, gouda, muenster, cheddar, etc. Aged and in slices, it was very adequate in this product. Officially, the name is Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.
Aged and delicious Asiago cheese has increased much in popularity in recent years, and is similar to Parmesan, but it also seems to be a bit like aged gouda. It originates in Veneto and Trentino, and is very adequate in this product. Provolone cheese should be well-known to any cheese lover, and originates in the Po Basin of Lombardia and Veneto. It's somewhat like white American cheese, but is also a bit like Helvetica cheese from Switzerland. Now "provolone valpadana" is not the same as "provolone del Monaco" originating from the Naples area.
Fontina cheese, which originates in the Aosta Valley, is similar to Swiss cheese. In the Alps or Apennine Mountains, some cheese is traditionally stored for six months or so in a cave for aging. Although well packaged, the damp conditions are perfect. Some of these caves are fancy, but many are just small rural caves where individuals or families can age home made cheese. In Lombardia I saw the name for these caves once from a book I have, but I couldn't locate it; I want to say a "cave grotto," but I think it was another word that starts with a "g." It showed a small cave with a heavy old fashioned door. This method goes back many centuries. In more urban settings, cheese is stored in deep cellars to age, although I think the cave method seems to be more effective for the best results. The dampness is probably the key. There are also special wooden boxes constructed for aging cheese, some very small for a family home.
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| Fontina cheese aging in a damp Alpine cave |
Top 20 Most Popular Italian Cheeses
A Trip to a Cheese Cave, Arona, Piedmont, Italy
Valentine Warner visits the Fontina Cheese Caves, Aosta Valley, Italy
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