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Cheese from Italy, Friuli Venezia Giulia

Sot la trape

Finished latteria cheeses aged at least 60 days, or caciotte aged at least 20 days, are sunk in wooden vats under unfermented must of local white or red grapes for 8–10 days (2–4 for small ones) at 10–15 °C. They are then smeared with wet pomace, rest about a month on wooden boards at 10–15 °C, and are scraped before sale.

Fully documentedCheese38 days – 40 daysPAT (traditional agri-food product, Friuli Venezia Giulia)Family: Uncooked or semi-cooked pressed cheese family (tomme, Saint-Nectaire, Reblochon, Morbier, Raclette)

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe sheets give no amount of must per cheese. A latteria wheel weighs about 6 kg and a caciotta 1–3 kg.
Latteria-type cheeses aged at least 60 days, or caciotta-type cheeses aged at least 20 days, with a clean rind and no cracks[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Unfermented must or pomace of local white or red grapes (Cabernet, Merlot, Refosco, Fragola, Tocai, Sauvignon, Verduzzo); dried grapes are also valued[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]

Total time across the recorded steps: 38 days – 40 days

Start
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What changes: Starting material: sound latteria and caciotta cheeses with clean rinds

Step 1 of 4
Choose the base cheeses
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
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

Finished latteria cheeses aged at least 60 days, or caciotte aged at least 20 days, are sunk in wooden vats under unfermented must of local white or red grapes for 8–10 days (2–4 for small ones) at 10–15 °C. They are then smeared with wet pomace, rest about a month on wooden boards at 10–15 °C, and are scraped before sale. Made in 4 steps over 38 days – 40 days. The longest step, rest on boards and scrape, takes 30 days (ERSA 2017) and runs at 10–15 °C (ERSA 2017).

Key numbers
Main step30 daysReported[pat-sheet]Rest on boards and scrape
Temperature10–15 °CReported[pat-sheet]Rest on boards and scrape

What makes this one different

The name means 'under the pomace'. Finished cheeses are affined under unfermented grape must and then pomace, not under wine, and the rind takes the grapes' colour.

Size
Latteria about 30–33 cm across, 8 cm high, about 6 kg; caciotta 10–15 cm across, 10 cm high, 1–3 kg
Rind
Even; violet from dark pomace, bright yellow from white grape pomace

Related ferments

Safety

The base cheeses are aged at least 20 or 60 days, and the must bath runs at 10–15 °C. These are process figures, not safety limits. The regional sheet says only that a self-control (HACCP) manual exists, and it does not say whether the base cheeses are made from raw milk.

History and sources

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

The regional sheet says the product is old in Friuli and points to its recipe in Pietro Adami's 1985 book on Carnian cooking.

Starter
The sources we found do not say how its fermentation begins.
Microbes
No study we found names its microbes.
  1. [pat-sheet] ERSA, Agenzia regionale per lo sviluppo rurale (Friuli Venezia Giulia), Prodotti tradizionali, 'Sot la trape' (page of 22 August 2017; copy hosted by ONAF)gov
  2. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (Organizzazione Nazionale Assaggiatori Formaggi), technical sheet 'Sot la trape'web
  3. [onaf] ONAF, cheese page 'Sot la trape' (id 395)web