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Cheese from Italy, Lombardia

Italico

Pasteurised whole cow milk is set with calf rennet and selected Streptococcus thermophilus cultures at 40–43 °C. The curd is cut in three stages to hazelnut size, moulded and kept warm and very humid at about 30 °C while it drains, then brined 5–6 hours. The soft cheese ripens 20–40 days.

Fully documentedCheese20 days – 40 daysTraditional food product (PAT, Regione Lombardia); class name set by ministerial decree of 10 May 1941Family: Uncooked or semi-cooked pressed cheese family (tomme, Saint-Nectaire, Reblochon, Morbier, Raclette)

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedMade in dairies; the sheets give no batch size or doses. A cheese weighs about 2 kg.
Whole cow milk, centrifuge-cleaned and pasteurised[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Selected thermophilic Streptococcus thermophilus cultures with low acidifying power[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Liquid calf rennet[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Calcium chloride, if the milk lacks calcium[onaf-sheet]
Salt (brine)[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Starterselected thermophilic Streptococcus thermophilus cultures

Total time across the recorded steps: 20 days – 40 days

Start
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72–74 °C

What changes: The milk is cleaned in a centrifuge and pasteurised

Step 1 of 6
Clean and pasteurise the milk
Time
Not documented
Temperature
72–74 °C
Reported
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
S. thermophilus

The milk is first cleaned in a centrifuge.

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

Pasteurised whole cow milk is set with calf rennet and selected Streptococcus thermophilus cultures at 40–43 °C. The curd is cut in three stages to hazelnut size, moulded and kept warm and very humid at about 30 °C while it drains, then brined 5–6 hours. The soft cheese ripens 20–40 days. Made in 6 steps over 20 days – 40 days. The longest step, ripen, takes 20–40 days (Regione Lombardia) and runs at 4–6 °C (ONAF (national organisation of cheese tasters)). Streptococcus thermophilus does most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step20–40 daysReported[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]Ripen
Temperature4–6 °CReported[onaf-sheet]Ripen

What makes this one different

Italico is a class name, set in 1941, for soft cheeses made like the Bel Paese brand. It is set warm with thermophilic cultures of low acidifying power, stoved in warm humid rooms and ripened only 20–40 days.

Rind
Thin, smooth, pale yellow
Size
Cylinder 15–20 cm across and 7–8 cm high, about 2 kg

Related ferments

Safety

The milk is pasteurised; the regional sheet notes that ripening and the lactic flora keep the cheese safe.

History and sources

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

A ministerial decree of 10 May 1941 grouped many soft cheeses sold under trade names into the class 'Italico'. The best known is Bel Paese, created in 1906 by Egidio Galbani and named after Antonio Stoppani's 1873 book.

  1. [pat-sheet] Regione Lombardia, traditional food product sheet 'Italico', copy hosted by ONAFgov
  2. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (national organisation of cheese tasters), technical sheet 'Italico'web
  3. [onaf] ONAF, cheese page 'Italico' (id 1012)web