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Cheese from Italy

Stelvio / Stilfser DOPStelvio

Lightly skimmed South Tyrolean cow milk is set with rennet at 32–33 °C, cut, stirred and pressed, then held in a conditioned room until the paste is acid enough. After brining, the wheels ripen at least 60 days on wooden boards and are washed with a mild brine that carries native Arthrobacter and Brevibacterium strains, which give the orange rind.

Fully documentedCheese2 monthsPDO (Regulation (EC) No 148/2007)

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe specification sets limits, not a recipe, and gives no batch size or doses. A wheel weighs 8–10 kg.
Cow milk from the delimited area, more than 3.10% proteinMay be cleaned by bactofugation and lightly skimmed to 3.45–3.80% fat; ONAF lists it as pasteurised[eu-application-2][onaf]
Lactic starter (optional)Added within 85 minutes before the rennet, when used[eu-application-2]
Calf rennet, or, in the 2020 amendment application, other coagulants including vegetable onesCalf rennet strength about 1:15,000, about 75% chymosin and 25% pepsin[eu-application-2]
Lysozyme (E1105, optional)Against early blowing[onaf]
Salt (brine), and a mild salt solution for washing the rind[eu-application]
Native rind culture of aerobic Arthrobacter and Brevibacterium strains[eu-application]
Starteroptional lactic starter in the vat; a native Arthrobacter and Brevibacterium smear culture on the rind

Total time across the recorded steps: 2 months

Start
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What changes: The milk is lightly skimmed to set its fat

Step 1 of 8
Prepare the milk
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Brevibacterium
Lactic acid bacteria

Milk from the delimited area may be cleaned by bactofugation and lightly skimmed with a separator.

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

Lightly skimmed South Tyrolean cow milk is set with rennet at 32–33 °C, cut, stirred and pressed, then held in a conditioned room until the paste is acid enough. After brining, the wheels ripen at least 60 days on wooden boards and are washed with a mild brine that carries native Arthrobacter and Brevibacterium strains, which give the orange rind. Made in 8 steps over 2 months. The longest step, ripen on wooden boards, takes at least 2 months (Application for registration 'Stelvio' or 'St…). Arthrobacter and Brevibacterium strains of the native rind culture, added to the washing brine in the first two to three weeks; they make the yellow-orange to orange-brown rind does most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main stepat least 2 monthsSet[eu-application][eu-application-2]Ripen on wooden boards
Temperature32–33 °CSet[eu-application-2][eu-application]Add rennet

What makes this one different

A South Tyrolean smear-ripened mountain cheese whose specification names the rind bacteria (Arthrobacter and Brevibacterium) added to the washing brine. Fed mainly on local hay and grass silage, with at most 15 kg of silage a head.

Size
Cylinder 34–38 cm across, 8–11 cm high, 8–10 kg (2020 text)
Composition
Fat in dry matter 50% or more; moisture no more than 44%
Shape
In the 2020 amendment application, cheese made only for slicing, dicing or grating may be made in a non-cylindrical shape

Related ferments

Safety

The specification fixes the make and at least 60 days of ripening but gives no pH or safety limits; ONAF lists the milk as pasteurised.

History and sources

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

The specification cites traces from the late Middle Ages and a 1914 description of the cheese and its make at the Stilfs (Stelvio) dairy. Commission Regulation (EC) No 148/2007 of 15 February 2007 registered the name. Non-minor amendments to the specification were approved by Regulation (EU) No 1132/2013 of 7 November 2013 and by Regulation (EU) 2021/588 of 6 April 2021, after the 2020 amendment application was published (Official Journal C 317, 25 September 2020).

  1. [eu-application] Application for registration 'Stelvio' or 'Stilfser', summary sheet, Official Journal of the EU C 251, 11.10.2005 (copy hosted by ONAF)spec
  2. [eu-application-2] Application for approval of a non-minor amendment, 'Stelvio' / 'Stilfser', with single document, Official Journal of the EU C 317, 25.9.2020 (CELEX 52020XC0925(02); copy hosted by ONAF)spec
  3. [eu-reg-2007] Commission Regulation (EC) No 148/2007 of 15 February 2007 registering certain names in the Register of protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications, Official Journal L 46, 16.2.2007, p. 14 (lists 'Stelvio' or 'Stilfser')spec
  4. [eu-reg-2013] Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 1132/2013 of 7 November 2013 approving non-minor amendments to the specification for Stelvio/Stilfser (PDO), Official Journal L 302, 13.11.2013, p. 20spec
  5. [eu-reg-2021] Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/588 of 6 April 2021 approving non-minor amendments to the specification for Stelvio/Stilfser (PDO), Official Journal L 125, 13.4.2021, p. 11spec
  6. [onaf] ONAF (national organisation of cheese tasters), cheese page 'Stelvio - Stilfser' (id 251)web