ST. Andre

Crafted in Coutances, in the Normandy region of northwestern France, St. André is a pasteurized cow's milk cheese, covered with a satiny, edible rind. Enchanting and celebratory, inside the downy rind you'll find a rich center that boasts up to 70% butterfat. The downy white outer layer offers a complex counterpoint to the wildly rich and silky center. As dense as pure butter and with the richest of flavors, the tongue-pleasing salty tang derives from the ocean air blowing through the pasturages of the Normandy coast. Produced in the shadow of the mystical island of Mont Saint-Michel, St. André cheese is just as breathtaking as the landscape of the surrounding Cotentin Peninsula.

The triple-cream cheeses originated in the Champagne region of France and are unique in that they are made with more butterfat. As a soft ripened cheese it has a white surface mold rind that over time changes the firm, chalky curd into a very smooth paste. Because the form size is about 3 inches high, the cheese is usually sold with a firm center surrounded by a very smooth ‘halo’ of softness. 

Rimrocker

Tumalo Farms is a recent addition to the American artisan cheese scene. The company was founded by the Flavio DeCastilhos family in 2004. This was the year that Flavio left his post as one of the founders of a leading medical software business to seek a more serene life in the country. He struck gold when he found an eighty-four acre tract of raw land near Bend, Oregon. After locating the best site for a house and a barn, Flavio hooked into the electrical grid, found water and began to cultivate pastures.

Next, he purchased 180 dairy goats to begin an new enterprise-cheesemaking. Flavio approaches the cheesemaking process as a harmonious union of art and science. His love for Van Gogh brought him to Holland, where he experienced a deep appreciation for well- made, traditional Goudas. He then embarked on a cheesemaking journey guided by knowledge gathered there.

The Tumolo Farms goat herd has grown to a substantial size over the years and the DeCastilhos are now milking over 700 French Alpine and Santa goats making theirs the largest herd in the Pacific Northwest.

Rimrocker, named after the rocky bluffs that line the edges of the land, is a blend of cow milk from a neighboring farm and the goat milk of Tumalo Farms. Semi-firm with a thin, burnt-red rind, Rimrocker certainly makes a statement on the cheese counter. Its buttery yellow paste has an aroma reminiscent of aged Parmesan with hints of roasted nuts. The flavors are smooth and savory, offset nicely by a bit of tang, and a rich, deep finish.

Petit Pont l'Eveque

This is another ancient Norman cheese made in the area of its namesake town, Pont l'Evêque. A cow’s milk cheese with a soft pâte, and washed yellow-orange to straw yellow rind, it is much more restrained and less pungent than some, rather with a grassy and mellow bouquet. The flavor is savory, reminiscent of Camembert, with a rich, creamy texture, the fat content is at least 45%. This smaller version of Pont L'Eveque will ripen more more quickly than the Grand Pont L'Eveque.

This cheese was already greatly appreciated in the Middle-Ages. Its name comes from the little town of Pont-l'Evêque, between Lisieux and Deauville, in Normandy. It was at first called “angelon” in the 16th century, maybe to recall the precise origin of this cheese developed in the Pays d'Auge, in the Touques valley, particularly abundant in rich pastures. It has been known as Pont-l'Evêque since the 17th century, and is possibly the oldest Norman cheese still in production.

Tomme de Fedou

Produced at Lozere, in the Languedoc-Roussillon region, near Hyelzas. Tomme de Fedou is a raw sheep's milk cheese whose paste becomes butter-colored, semi-firm, smooth and moist on the palate. Characteristically sweet and nutty, with aromas of grass, juniper and wildflowers, especially from cheeses produced in the summer months. Produced about 3,000ft. above sea level, on a plateau that covers about 130 square miles.

The sheep's milk is sourced from 13 herders in the area, who have formed a co-op. Farmers are paid according to the quality of the milk and, as such, if the farmers are able to provide better milk, which depends on the animals' diet and general husbandry, they receive more money.

During production, the curds are hand-ladled into forms and pressed. Cheeses are then aged for between three and six months prior to sale. The rind of the cheese is pale, gray-brown in color with a slightly pitted appearance. The paste is smooth and ivory-cream colored, close textured with occasional small holes.

Tomme de Savoie

Tomme de Savoie is a semi-firm cow's milk cheese made in the Valley of the Savoie in the French Alps. It has a delightfully nutty flavor and a smooth, straw colored paste that melts in your mouth.

Tomme de Savoie is often made with skim milk after the cream has been used to make butter. This is why Tommes are traditionally low in fat content (20-40 %). There are many varieties of Tommes and are often named after the village where they are produced. Tommes, made in winter are from the milk of cows that are fed hay very different from the Tommes made with the summer milk from cows that gaze in the high mountain pastures.

The maturing process often takes several months which gives the cheese a thick rind with a rustic appearance. It is gray in color with patches of yellow or red moulding. Delicious with wine from the Côtes de Beaune region as well as Alsatian Rieslings.

Grès des Vosges

The pungent raw-milk Munster that frequently ends a meal in Alsace is surely one of France's finest cheeses. Many creameries make Munster, but only one makes Grès des Vosges. It is a proprietary cheese commissioned by Fromi, a large European broker that makes the cheese in multiple sizes but only two are available here. France can only send us versions made with pasteurized milk because of Food and Drug Administration regulations.

Grès des Vosges (gray day vozh), is a similar cheese made by an Alsatian creamery that also produces Munster. Both wheels are washed-rind cheeses made with cow's milk and matured for about a month, but the lesser-known cheese delivers more pleasure. Both are relatively flat, less than two inches tall, with a moist, tacky, sandstone-colored surface and a fern leaf on top.

Bring this cheese to your nose before you taste it. Its yeasty aroma will seduce anyone who appreciates stinky cheese, although it is not nearly as robust as some. Notes of garlic, mushroom, barnyard and cultured milk, all fuse into a compelling scent.

Just underneath its thin, crunchy rind, the cheese is creamy and the color of pale butter, becoming firmer and paler toward the heart. The texture is semisoft and supple. Consider a spicy, racy white wine from Alsace, such as Gewürztraminer or Pinot Gris.

Roaring 40's Blue

Roaring 40's Blue Cheese comes from King Island, located south of Melbourne in the Great Southern Ocean, is one of the last remaining remnants of the land bridge once time linked Tasmania to the Australian mainland. Exceptionally picturesque on a fine day, but ferocious westerly winds which blow directly down the 40°S Longitude can, and do, create treacherous seas. These winds came to be known as the Roaring 40's, and are the basis for the mystique inherent in the Island's history. Thousands of souls have been lost in shipwrecks on its rocky shoreline. All around the island, you can find memorial cairns which tell tales of the lives of those shipwrecked, their brave rescuers, and the lighthouse keepers who worked tirelessly through the night.

It was these very tragedies that gave the island its unique ambiance, and literally seeded the foundation upon which the island's dairy industry now rests. During the 15th and 16th centuries, as the Roaring 40's swept their fury across the trade routes causing shipwrecks, straw mattresses from many parts of the world drifted ashore. Their seeds germinated in the rich island soils and created the lush pastures that set the King Island dairy industry apart. The dairy herds graze on these dense, verdant pastures, supplementing their rich diet occasionally with a helping of kelp washed up after heavy storms. There is no need for the artificial feed supplements and stock growth additives that other farmers have come to rely on. And so, King Island cows have become renowned for producing the sweetest, creamiest, purist milk, leading to an array of fine dairy products and award-winning cheeses.

A full flavoured blue with honeyed, slightly nutty character, a rich mouth feel and delightful aftertaste, this rindless cheese is matured in its wax coating, which cuts off the oxygen supply, promoting its sweet and fruity flavour. The wax also assists in retaining the blue's moisture, creating a smooth and creamy texture.

Red Leicester

What we call “Red Leicester” cheese today can be traced back to 17th century and the style of cheese was much influenced by cheesemaking practices in other parts of England. Farmers recognised the need to make their cheeses look, and if possible taste different from cheeses made in other parts of the country and the convention of colouring cheese with annatto – a vegetable dye derived from the husk of the fruit of the annatto tree found in South America and the Caribbean – spread from Gloucester and Cheshire to Leicestershire.

Cheese with a rich orange hue was much valued as it signified high quality. Milk produced by cows grazing on rich grass pastures would naturally have a high carotene content which gave it an orange hue. The cheesemaking process would have concentrated that colour. Other regions of the country then started to colour their milk to mimic Gloucestershire cheese and Leicestershire was routinely coloured.

Most of the cheese was traded in the county town of Leicester and so important did this become that a cheese market was established in the City in 1759 and rules and regulations put in place to determine quality. Henceforth the cheese became to be known as Leicester Cheese. 

Leicester Cheese was highly rated owing to the fine grazing conditions available in the County and although cheese was sent to other parts of the country – notably London – most was consumed in the county. 

Flavours and Texture

Red Leicester is a russet red hard pressed cheese which will be sold at anything from 3 months to 12 months of age. The traditionally made wheels tend to be firmer and drier but have a luxurious creamy texture and a slightly sweet mellow flavour that becomes stronger as the cheese matures. 

Achadinha Cheese Company

Achadinha Cheese Company is owned by Jim and Donna Pacheco of Pacheco Family Dairy. Established in 1955 in Bodega Bay then relocated to Petaluma in 1969 by Jim's father. Jim and Donna reside on the ranch with their four children to carry on his family legacy.

Jim Pacheco is a third generation dairyman and cheesemaker. The Pachecos raise over 1500 goats who roam freely. Depending on the season, the animals eat varying amounts of pasture supplemented with feed hay and brewers grain purchased from local breweries. The goats are never given hormones or antibiotics.

In 1997, Jim and Donna sold their cows and bought dairy goats. They now have close to 1600 goats. The girls are able to eat pasture all year long on 290 acres and eat all of the brewer’s grain from the local breweries they want. When it rains and they refuse to go out, then they are supplemented with alfalfa hay. Along with the goats, Jim and Donna have dogs, horses, beef cows, pigs, sheep, and chickens .

Most of the milk that comes from the Pacheco's goats is used to produce Achadinha Cheese Company cheeses; the rest is sold to other cheese companies. The Pacheco Family strongly believes that it is important for people to know where their food comes from. All cheeses are handmade by Donna Pacheco.

Capricious (Ca-pree-shus) ~ won "Best in Show" at the American Cheese Society event in 2002 and named one of Saveurs "50 favorite cheeses in the United States" in 2005. Capricious is an aged cheese hand rolled in an old european style. A truly unique artisan cheese made with attention to detail and naturally aged in the fresh Pacific Ocean air. Savor the flavors as this cheese travels through the palate.

Broncha (Bron-ka) ~ Inspired by a Portuguese family recipe and infused with the subtle flavors of the brewers grains fed to the goats, Broncha is a gentle table cheese. Try shaving it over your best veggie recipes to add the special flavors that only goats milk can provide.

Feta ~ Pacheco Dairy's pasteurized goat's milk Feta is a fresh style Feta, that is soaked in a sea salt brine and delivered to market within four weeks. The Feta has a sweet creamy taste and texture with a fresh brine finish.

Oriol de Montbrú

A dense and dreamy little wheel of cheese, ours came with a patchwork of bright yellow mold on the outside as vibrant as spring mustard in bloom. Creamy and mild at first, the flavor slowly develops complexity to become the curious and charismatic Spanish party guest that captures your imagination.

This semi-firm pasteurized buffalo milk cheese is made by Formageries Montbru in the Catalonia region of Spain. Buffalo milk is rare in Spain, but thanks to a Northern Italian with too many buffalo on his land, 1,500 head were relocated to a nature preserve in Catalonia and Oriol de Montbru was born.

Pere and Imma began making goat cheese in 1989 with milk from their own herd at their farmhouse Montbrú in Moià, (Barcelona). Their son Oriol joined them 7 years later and has since taken over as cheesemaker. It was Oriol who took on the project of developing buffalo milk cheeses and the first one he has chosen is young, creamy, sweet and very versatile. Aged 20 days, it is a small wheel with a slight covering of blue-gray mold, very similar to Garrotxa. Each wheel is wrapped in paper and attractive Raffia. Serve on a cheese plate alongside honey, dried or fresh figs, with fruits such as pears and sweet, mild apples.

Saint Albray

Made from pasteurized cow's milk, this Saint Albray is formed into a shape of a flower with each "petal" forming a scalloped silhouette. Saint Albray slices beautifully and is mild and moist, yet retains its body despite its creamy nature. Its enduring success comes from the distinctive taste. As a young soft ripened cheese, St. Albray resembles a rich and mellow Camembert, but with a less intense flavor. Within the aging process, it develops the hearty, robust flavor and rich aroma of a traditional washed-rind cheese. This cheese comes from the Aquitaine region of France.

Brunet by Caseificio Alta Langa

Produced by Caseificio Alta Langa in Piedmont region of Italy, and headquartered in Bosia, a village just south of Asti and Alba, this dairy specializes in crafting traditional local cheeses by modern methods. In addition to being one of Italy's foremost wine regions, Piedmont supports a lot of dairy farming. Brunet is the name of one of the local goat breeds. Like some Robiola, the region's best-known cheese, Brunet is 100 percent goat's milk

The cheese matures for about 10 days at the dairy, so it is probably still less than 3 weeks old by the time it reaches retail counters. How the cheesemakers manage to get so much personality into such a young cheese is beyond explanation. It spreads like soft whipped butter but collapses on the tongue like thick whipped cream. Pair with a well rounded white wine such as a smooth Chardonnay with no apparent oak, a sparkling wine or a honeyed Arneis, Piedmont's best-known white wine.

Supreme Brie

Made from cow's milk, Supreme is a soft ripened, bloomy white rind cheese enriched with crème fraîche. This heavy cream brie is known for being smooth, rich, and subtle at first, then slowly progressing into a more earthy and complex flavor profile. Inside the downy rind you'll discover a creamy center that boasts up to 70% butterfat. 

Born in the Burgundy Region of France in 1926, when François Paul-Renard, heir to the family cheese-making business, started a small cheese dairy in an old windmill. His father is forever credited with creating the production process that allows for a perfect maturing of packaged cheese. Later introduced in the 1930s under the name “Les Ducs” in Camembert size, by 1950 Supreme had gained a strong reputation.

Delice de Bourgogne

This decadent triple-cream cheese is unapologetically rich, with a silky smooth, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Covered by a thin rind with a light coating of mould that will delight cheese lovers with its velvety, mellow taste, without the excessive salt that diminishes the enjoyment of some triple creams.

A tribute to small scale industrial French cheese-making, Delice de Bourgogne is made by Fromagerie Lincet, who also produces the beloved Brillat-Savarin. Delice de Bourgogne is a triple cream too, which means that the fat content in the dry matter - the cheese minus its water - is at least 75 percent. Made with whole cow's milk alone, a cheese typically measures about 45 percent fat, so to achieve the elevated richness, the producer has to add cream or creme fraiche. The tangy, sour cream-like tartness of Delice de Bourgogne is one clue that Lincet uses creme fraiche, France's famous cultured cream. That acidic note keeps this unctuous cheese from being cloying. Makes a dreamy breakfast, lunch or dessert - just add champagne!

Gabietou

Gabietou hails from the steep pastures of the Western Pyrenees. During the summer cows and sheep alike graze on alpine grasses, wild herbs, and flowers high in the mountains. The french have a term for seasonal cheese production: devette.

Devette comes from the verb devetir, meaning "to undress." It's used to describe the practice of moving a herd of ruminants up into high, mountain pastures to graze on the lush and varied grasses that become exposed as the winter snow melts away. Every spring the herds are unleashed to "undress" the mountain.

The practice evolved in valley settlements that are surrounded by mountain ranges. Farmers had to be astute planners to feed their herds year-round. So in the spring, when grasses on the mountainsides emerged from the snow, farmers would lead their herds up to take advantage of the new growth -- and thereby reserve more of their easy-to-harvest valley pastures for hay production, which could keep the cows fed through the winter.

All that fresh, verdant grass results in rich, flavorful milk and, in the right hands, cheese. Gabietou (gah-bee-ay-too) is a prime example. Made in one of the valleys running through the French Pyrenees, a region known for its shepherding and cheesemaking traditions, it made its debut in 2001. The cheesemaker, Gabriel Bachelet, was obsessed with finding the perfect blend of spring milks for his cheese. After much experimentation, he settled on a combination of one-third sheep and two-thirds cow's milk. The combination gives the semifirm cheese a luscious texture (think fontina, but more luxurious) and a wonderful bouquet of aromas and flavors, including hints of hazelnut from the sheep's milk.

Wheels of Gabietou are made in late spring, and at one week old they are moved to the aging caves of famed affineurs (experts in cheese aging) such as Herve Mons. There, they are washed weekly to keep their rinds supple and encourage the activities of beneficial bacteria called Brevibacterium linens, aka B. linens. These bacteria give Gabietou's rind its lovely light peach hue. The affineur tends to the wheels for three to five months, releasing the first wheels just in time for harvest in September.

Silky, nutty and altogether bewitching, Gabietou will allow you to bring a hint of vibrant spring pastures to your fall table. The texture of Gabietou is semisoft, smooth and supple with occasional holes, or "eyes." The rind is a thin orange, copper color, slightly pungent but not overwhelming. Flavors are dense, rich, mellow and creamy with notes of fruit that are balanced by earthy, mushroomy notes.

Robiola Rustica la Casera

"Robiola" is the general name for soft cheeses from Northwest Italy. Varieties of Robiola are produced across Piedmont from the provinces of Cuneo, Asti and Alessandria and into Lombardy. It is one of the specialties of the Aosta Valley. The taste and appearance of Robiola varies depending upon where it was produced.

Made by La Casera in Lombardy, Robiola Rustica is a soft, cow’s milk cheese with an eye catching orange, red rind, similar to Taleggio. Beautifully wrapped with a rustic ribbon of straw, this small-format washed rind cheese is generally cave-aged for two to three months. The aroma is pleasantly pungent and the pâte is soft, velvety, and intensely-flavored, with bold fruity notes. The soft white interior has a rich, earthy flavor reminiscent of mushrooms and cream, with a nutty finish. The colorful rind provides a textural component and adds a subtle crunch to the cheese. Simply divine.

Affinage

By the time they're shipped form their makers, some cheeses are fully aged and ripened, while other may need days, weeks, or even months to reach their peak. Traditional cheesemakers often relied on specialists called affineurs (ripeners) to bring their cheeses to the final ready state. Such arrangements were part of a tiered system where dairy farmers supplied their product to larger dairies or cooperatives where smaller producers benefit from economies of scale, increased marketing clout, and faster cash flow.

This tiered system is still in effect for many of the larger Alpine cheeses as well as Roquefort and other famous old world types. Many of the top Italian cheeses are selected, ripened, and exported by Guffanti.

Many relationships between cheesemakers and affineurs are historical and regulated, so you can be assured your cheeses are authentic. Roquefort's appellation rules specify not only the breed of sheep form which the milk must come and the permissible production zone but also its ripening, which must occur in the caves of Combalou beneath Roquefort-sur-Soulzon. Many of the cheeses are made outside the town itself, but all of them are ripened by producers who own sections of those caves. Roquefort ripening is a well defined procedure, lasting at least 3 months but often as many as 8.

Affinage is about nurturing cheese and letting them ripen in their own time in order to bring out their best qualities. To be successful, an affineur must have full knowledge of the entire equation, beginning with land stewardship, animal husbandry, and milk production, and extending right through each step of cheesemaking. The affineur's skills include selection, tasting, and the application of ripening treatments.

Vendeen Bichon Pascal Beillevaire

Vendéen Bichonné, a pasteurized cow's milk cheese from Brittany whose name translates as "the pampered cheese from the Vendée region." The person doing the pampering is Pascal Beillevaire, an affineur (cheese ager) who buys 6-week-old wheels from a cooperative near Nantes and transports them to his underground cave, a former railroad tunnel, in the Auvergne. The wheels stay in this humid environment for two months, during which time they are turned and brushed occasionally to clean them up.

The wheels, which weigh 10 to 12 pounds, arrive in the Bay Area with a healthy cloak of gray and white molds. Before Beillevaire buys and matures the wheels, the cheese is known as Halbran, a name that few French people would even recognize. It is primarily a local cheese - at least until Beillevaire matures it, rechristens it, puts it in his retail shops in Paris and ships it overseas.

The Beillevaire business is an active part of the community of Machecoul and the surrounding area and is deeply connected to Pascal’s roots. In fact, the dairy is located only 6km from Pascal’s family farm “La Vacheresse” where Pascal was born. Pascal began working on his parents’ dairy farm as a young boy. When selling family milk and cream at local market places, he quickly discovered a passion for the trade and for the products themselves. From the age of 17, Pascal has worked tirelessly to develop what is now a broad offering of dairy products under the Pascal Beillevaire brand including fresh milk, cream, butter, yogurt, crème fraîche, mousses and cheese. All of these products are made using raw milk that is brought to the dairy twice each day from local farms all within 10km of the dairy. When the milk arrives at the dairy, it is still warm from the cow at the perfect temperature to begin production.

Affinage

Following the success with his own dairy products, Pascal decided to expand his operation to include affinage – the art of aging cheeses. His approach is entirely consistent with his roots as he works closely with small farmhouse or ‘fermier’ producers who send their young cheeses to him in order to be carefully aged and sold both within Europe and now to their U.S. customers. In choosing to pursue these farmhouse cheeses, he is actively contributing to the maintenance of an important rural artisan trade and helping to preserve ancestral know-how. Today, 200 producers send more than 400 cheeses to the ripening caves of Pascal Bellevaire.

Camellia

Since 1968, when her parents founded their goat dairy "Redwood Hill Farm" in Sonoma County, Jennifer Bice has been intimately involved in raising, milking, and making Certified Humane goat cheese. Located in warm and verdant Sebastopol, Jennifer's herds of Nubian, Alpine, Saanen, and LaMancha goats clamber around green pastures when the weather is fine but, are kept snugly inside when the winds and rains buck up.

Named after one of their favorite does, Camellia is a luscious, Camembert-style goat milk cheese. It has a mild, buttery flavor and firm texture when young, becoming softer and more complex with age. The white, edible penicillum candidum rind ripens the cheese from the outside inwards, becoming fully ripe when the center is soft to the touch (like a ripe peach). This usually takes 5-6 weeks, though the cheese is delicious at any age.

Cameo

Cameo is the slightly more rambunctious sister of Redwood Hill's famous soft-ripened Camellia. Larger in size and adorned with fresh peppercorns and local herbs, Cameo makes its presence known on a cheese plate. Rich, with whispers of the classic pungency goat's milk is so well-known for; the paste is incredibly luxurious and melts lovingly on your tongue. The fresh peppercorns add a bright floral note which is a delightful contrast to the darker flavor profile it accompanies.

A ripe Cameo will give when probed in the center, like a ripe avocado. The bloomy rind should be white, not rusty or brown, which means the cheese is probably heading south. But if you like more pronounced flavor, don't refuse a wheel with a little browning on the edges. Cameo pairs well with sparkling wine and with a moderately intense Pinot Noir.

Cameo, like Camellia, is a farmstead cheese, made with milk from Redwood Hill's 300 goats. These lucky goats reside at the country's first certified-humane goat dairy. 

Pecorino Toscano

The word for sheep in Italian is pecora - hence the name Pecorino. There are many different types of Pecorino produced throughout southern and central Italy where the rugged landscape lends itself to dairy sheep production. Production is concentrated in the craggy hills of the Maremma, the wild area that extends from Sienna on down to the coast.

Although cheeses vary from producer to producer, the characteristics of Pecorino Toscano are a firm texture, intense flavor and a mildly peppery finish. Flavors become more savory and intense with age, while retaining an underlying sweetness and mellow quality. It can be either raw or pasteurized milk, but it is always made with milk from animals who graze or are fed hay or dried grasses. No silage is permitted. 

The cheese usually takes the form of a semi-flattened sphere. The outer rind is often ochre coloured, but there is considerable variability according to how the the cheese has been washed during maturation, generally with a combination of crushed tomatos, ash and/or olive oil.

Fresh Pecorino Toscano is quite mild, and rather creamy, though it does have some nutty oak leaf overtones, with underlying savory and sweet flavors that intensify with age. With time Pecorino Toscano becomes firmer and sharper, though it never approaches the sharpness or the saltiness of pecorino Romano. Try pairing with olives, Italian cured meats, and with crisp white wines, or Italian wines from Chianti.

Pecorino Romano

Few cheeses in the world can boast of such ancient roots as those of Pecorino Romano. For over two thousand years, the flocks of sheep that freely graze in the countryside in the regions of Latium and Sardinia have produced the milk from which this cheese is made. In ancient times, Romans already appreciated Pecorino Romano. 

Romano doesn't refer to Rome the city, but to the Romans. In the imperial palaces it was considered just the right touch to banquets, while its preservation capacity made it an ideal ration for the Roman legion in its journeys. Its use was so widespread among the Romans that a daily ration of 27 grams was established for Legionnaires, in addition to the staples of bread and einkorn soup! This cheese gave renewed strength and energy to the tired soldiers and today we know why: it provides an easily digestible source of energy.

Pecorino Romano is most often used on pasta dishes. Its distinctive aromatic, pleasantly sharp, very salty flavour means that in Italian cuisine, it is preferred for some pasta dishes with highly-flavoured sauces, especially those of Roman origin, such as bucatini all'amatriciana or spaghetti alla carbonara. The sharpness depends on the period of maturation, which varies from five months for a table cheese to at least eight months for a grating cheese. On the first of May, Roman families traditionally eat Pecorino with fresh fava beans, during a daily excursion in the Roman Campagna.