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Cheese from Italy, Sardegna

Formaggio di colostro ovino

Ewe colostrum, the thick milk of the first 4–5 days after lambing, is warmed to 35 °C, set with liquid calf rennet under wool blankets into one compact mass and pressed by hand in a perforated cylinder. The cheese is dipped for a few minutes in the boiling whey left from making colostrum ricotta, pressed again, brined 24 hours and dried 4–5 days. It is eaten within about a week, often grilled.

Fully documentedCheese5 days – 6 daysTraditional food product (PAT, Sardegna)Family: Whey-cooked rennet curd family (halloumi type)

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedMade in the home kitchen or a small family dairy; the sheets give no batch size or doses, and the weight of a cheese varies by maker.
Raw ewe colostrumOnly available for 4–5 days after a lamb is born; filtered before use[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Liquid calf rennet[onaf-sheet]
Salt, as saturated brine[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]

Total time across the recorded steps: 5 days – 6 days

Start
Drag the bar or press Play
35 °C

What changes: Rennet goes into ewe colostrum warmed to 35 °C and is stirred in

Step 1 of 6
Warm the colostrum and add rennet
Time
Not documented
Temperature
35 °C
Reported
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Ewe colostrum, the thick milk of the first 4–5 days after lambing, is warmed to 35 °C, set with liquid calf rennet under wool blankets into one compact mass and pressed by hand in a perforated cylinder. The cheese is dipped for a few minutes in the boiling whey left from making colostrum ricotta, pressed again, brined 24 hours and dried 4–5 days. It is eaten within about a week, often grilled. Made in 6 steps over 5 days – 6 days. The longest step, dry and eat fresh, takes 4–5 days (Laore Sardegna (regional agricultural develop…).

Key numbers
Main step4–5 daysReported[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]Dry and eat fresh
Temperature35 °CReported[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]Warm the colostrum and add rennet

What makes this one different

Made only from ewe colostrum, which sets into a single compact block that is never cut. The pressed cheese is scalded in the boiling whey of the colostrum ricotta made right after it.

Rind
None; white surface
Size
Flat cylinder; size and weight vary by maker
Season
January to November

Related ferments

Safety

Made from raw colostrum and eaten within about a week, or frozen. The few-minute dip in boiling whey, brining and cold storage at 4–6 °C are part of the method, but the sources do not test how far they lower the risk. WHO says most brucellosis cases come from unpasteurised milk or cheese from infected goats or sheep. ANSES names Listeria, Salmonella and enterohaemorrhagic E. coli as the main raw-milk cheese hazards. It advises pregnant women, people over 65, people with weak immunity and young children not to eat raw-milk cheeses, except cooked pressed ones such as Comté.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Laore says colostrum was mainly given to children and the old as a rich food, and the cheese has always been a delicacy because colostrum is scarce and the cheese keeps only a short time. It is now made by herders and small family dairies.

Starter
The sources we found do not say how its fermentation begins.
Microbes
No study we found names its microbes.
  1. [pat-sheet] Laore Sardegna (regional agricultural development agency), Prodotto tradizionale della Sardegna, sheet 'Formaggio fresco di colostro ovino' (copy hosted by ONAF)gov
  2. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (Organizzazione Nazionale Assaggiatori Formaggi), technical sheet 'Formaggio di colostro ovino'web
  3. [onaf] ONAF, cheese page 'Formaggio di colostro ovino' (id 369)web
  4. [anses2022] ANSES 2022, Fromages au lait cru, quels risques pour la santé et comment mieux les prévenir (8 April 2022)gov
  5. [who-brucellosis] World Health Organization, Brucellosis fact sheetgov