Description
Nostrano Valtrompia PDO is an extra-hard medium fat cheese, ripened for at least 12 months and produced with raw cow’s milk originating from the production area. At least 90% of the milk must come from cows belonging to the Bruna breed, grazed in fresh meadows in the summer and fed on hay for the rest of the year.
Production Area
The production area of Nostrano Valtrompia PDO is within numerous municipalities in the Province of Brescia, in the Lombardy region.
Production Method
The milk comes from a maximum of four consecutive milkings and is semi-skimmed. The milk from the various milkings is left in basins to filter, (traditionally these are round, in wood or iron, or rectangle in steel, with the milk draining from the bottom), after which the cream is separated (a “spannarola”, a kind of metal plate, is used for the traditional method). The milk is then transferred to the copper boiler for curdling, where calf rennet is added. The curd is broken until the grains are the size of a rice grain, after which it is mixed with a “rotella”, a traditional wooden utensil. Saffron is added before cooking, at a temperature of between 47 and 52 °C, in order to give the cheese its typical colour. The cooked curd is extracted and transferred into moulds that imprint the identity mark on the heel of the cheese. The wheels are then salted for 20 days and left to ripen for a minimum of 12 months, during which time they are constantly turned. During the ripening period, the rind is filed and basted with linseed oil, which prevents premature loss of moisture.
Appearance and Flavour
Nostrano Valtrompia PDO has a cylindrical shape with an almost straight heel. The rind is hard and varies from yellowish-brown to brownish-red in colour. The cheese is straw-yellow, tending towards yellowish-green, and is hard, not particularly grainy, and may have evenly distributed eyes. It has a full and intense flavour, without any sour hints, with pungent notes in the very mature cheese.
History
Nostrano Valtrompia PDO has an ancient history, as demonstrated by sources and documents that can be traced back as far as the 1500s, which describe rearing methods and cheese-making traditions in detail, practices which were often carried out by the same person, the farmer/cheesemaker, and an art that was passed down from father to son. Evidence of the importance of cheese-making in the Valley of Trompia can be found in a document from 1490, in which the analyst Pietro Voltolino writes about the existence of regulations forbidding the foresters in the Municipality of Bovegno to use the pastures. The originality and typicality of Nostrano Valtrompia PDO are therefore strongly rooted in the cultural and productive fabric of the terroir of origin.
Gastronomy
Nostrano Valtrompia PDO should be kept in a cool dry place, away from direct light or heat sources. It is an excellent grating cheese, but also table cheese, served with fruit and vegetable preserves or honey, in particular apple or lime varieties, which bring out the cheese’s flavour.
Marketing
The product is marketed as Nostrano Valtrompia PDO. It is sold year-round in whole wheels or pieces, and in the latter case it can be vacuum-packed or packed in modified atmosphere packaging.
Distinctive Features
The organoleptic qualities of Nostrano Valtrompia PDO can be traced back to the specific characteristics of the production process, such as the addition of saffron, which gives the cheese its distinctive aromatic notes, or the continuous oil basting during the ripening period, which gives the cheese its distinctive firm and springy texture.
