Castelmagno Cheese (Whole Wheel)

CheeseCastelmagno Cheese Whole Wheel

Castelmagno is the king of Piedmontese semi-hard cheeses, characterized by a strong flavor. It can be offered as a first course to be savored and enjoyed with your family.

Castelmagno is a semi-hard, half-fat cheese produced from whole cow's milk, obtained from cattle of Piemontese Breed fed on fresh forage or hay from mixed meadows or pasture. You will surely enjoy this tasting experience of Alps cheeses from the Grana Valley, one of the several Cuneo province alpine valleys and particularly known for the Castelmagno DOP. This cheese has a very old history and is manufactured today using the traditional methods, without the use of pasteurization and fermentation, still using wooden molds and curing in natural caves.

Characteristics of Castelmagno Cheese

Castelmagno cheese is a semi-hard cheese, produced with whole raw cow's milk and small additions of partially skimmed sheep or goat's milk (5-20%) coming from cows fed with fodder, fresh or affienati, of the production area.

Territory of production

Piedmont, in the municipalities of Castelmagno, Pradleves and Monterosso Grana, in the province of Cuneo.

Shape and size

Castelmagno cheese has a cylindrical shape with a diameter of 15-25 cm, the heel is 12 to 20 cm high, while the weight varies from 2 to 7 kg. The bark is a little rough depending on the cure, which in this case is 6 months old. The paste is ivory white and the longer it matures, its texture becomes more compact and friable. It is considered blue because mold, present in cellars, sometimes penetrates the rind and forms fine blue veins that give the cheese a spicier flavor. It is used as a table cheese or for first courses as the typical risotto with chicory and Castelmagno.

Appearance and flavor

The rind is thin and smooth, yellow-reddish in the cooler forms and tends to have a wrinkled appearance in the most seasoned forms. The paste, very crumbly and without holes, is ivory white in color with a tendency to yellow-ocher and has blue-green veins (blue veining) in the most seasoned forms. The flavor is delicate if slightly seasoned, tasty and spicy if seasoned.

Aging

It occurs in natural and dry places, preferably in caves, for a period of not less than 60 days. If it is seasoned, the rind is wrinkled and the straw color is heavy, moldy, tending to brown. The paste is grainy, white or straw-colored, depending on the seasoning. It can be blue-veined naturally, with green veins.

Pairings

It is recommended to serve it at room temperature with good toasted bread that mixes well with the cheese paste accompanied by red wine, dry with good structure and persistence. If served with walnuts, or jams, it will create an optimal balance of aromas and flavors to make it appreciate remarkably. Do not forget the combination of pecorino with fava beans.

Castelmagno PDO should be kept in a cool place or in the refrigerator, in the least cold compartment, wrapped in its purchase paper. It can also be enjoyed as a dessert, accompanied by honey or jams. Find the right pairing with full-bodied red wines.

Production

This cheese, which is mainly produced with cow's milk and sometimes added with sheep or goat's milk in however rather small percentages, has truly ancient origins, so much so that it is thought that its production began around the year one thousand. However, the first document in which it is explicitly mentioned is a sentence of 1277, with which the payment of a tax was imposed on the municipality of Castelmagno to be made in the form of Castelmagno cheese. While it is a few centuries later, precisely of 1722, a decree of King Vittorio Amedeo II ordered the supply of forms of Castelmagno to the local feudal lord.

Raw milk from a maximum of four consecutive milkings, with the possible addition of 5-20% sheep's and goat's milk, without any inoculation of milk enzymes, is coagulated with calf rennet. The curd, rennet, undergoes a break to the size of a grain of corn, shaken in the boiler and then extracted and placed on a cloth, which is called "risola", where it remains for 18 hours. The 'risola' is hung or laid on an inclined plane for draining. The dough then ends up in special containers, immersed in the whey from the previous processing, for a period ranging from 2 to 4 days. Finally, it is broken into cubes, finely chopped, salted and placed again in containers, where it is pressed.

It is produced only in a restricted area of ​​the Val Grana, coinciding with the three municipalities of Castelmagno, Pradleves and Monterosso Grana. The DOC dates back to 1982, the PDO recognition was awarded in 1996. The attempts to imitate it in the surrounding countries and valleys are innumerable, often with names that in one way or another recall that of "Castelmagno".

Castelmagno is a semi-hard, half-fat cheese produced from whole cow's milk, obtained from cattle of Piemontese Breed fed on fresh forage or hay from mixed meadows or pasture. You will surely enjoy this tasting experience of Alps cheeses from the Grana Valley, one of the several Cuneo province alpine valleys and particularly known for the Castelmagno DOP. This cheese has a very old history and is manufactured today using the traditional methods, without the use of the pasteurization and fermentation, still using wooden molds and curing in natural caves.

Suggestion: Chianti pairs well with this cheese. It is appreciated as a table cheese and used in the preparation of typical Italian dishes such as gnocchi.

13 pound (5.9 kilogram) - WEIGHT APPROXIMATES

Ingredients: Raw cow's milk, rennet, salt - rind not edible

Packaging: Paper wrap

Aging: 8 - 10 months
Flavor: Sharp, spicy, strong
Texture: Semi-hard
Color: Ivory
Aroma: Strong
Region: Castelmagno, Piedmont

Product of Italy