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Cheese from Italy, Lombardy, Val Taleggio

Strachitunt PDOStrachitunt (dialect for 'round stracchino')

Raw whole milk of mostly Bruna cows is set with calf rennet twice, about 12 hours apart. The first curd drains in a cloth for at least 12 hours; the second is broken in the vat, and the two are layered warm and cold in a mould. After dry salting, the wheels are pierced with needles from about day 30 so moulds already in the milk and the cellar can grow inside. They ripen at least 75 days; no mould is added.

Fully documentedCheese3.7 monthsPDO (EU), Reg. (EU) No 244/2014; amended 2016 and 2023Family: Blue-veined cheese family (Roquefort as template)

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe specification gives conditions, not doses. Wheels weigh 4–7 kg (4–6 kg before the 2023 amendment) and are 25–28 cm across.
Raw whole cow milk from two separate milkings, at least 90 % from Bruna cows; skimming is banned[strach-2013][strach-2023]
Calf rennet[strach-2013]
Salt[strach-2013]
Natural or selected starter from strains native to the area (optional); fungal spores may not be added[strach-onaf]
Starteroptional native starter; no fungal cultures

Total time across the recorded steps: 3.7 months

Start
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at least 10 °CHumidity 80–90 %

What changes: The first curd hangs in a cloth and drains through the night

Step 1 of 6
Make the first curd and hang it
Time
at least 12 h
Set
Temperature
at least 10 °C
Set
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactobacilli
Moulds

Milk is set with calf rennet at 33–38 °C in 20–30 minutes (ONAF sheet), and the curd is gathered in a natural or synthetic cloth.

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

Raw whole milk of mostly Bruna cows is set with calf rennet twice, about 12 hours apart. The first curd drains in a cloth for at least 12 hours; the second is broken in the vat, and the two are layered warm and cold in a mould. After dry salting, the wheels are pierced with needles from about day 30 so moulds already in the milk and the cellar can grow inside. They ripen at least 75 days; no mould is added. Made in 6 steps over 3.7 months. The longest step, ripen, takes at least 2.5 months (European Commission 2013) and runs at 4–10 °C (ONAF (national organisation of cheese tasters)). Lactic microflora of micrococcaceae, enterococci and mesophilic and thermophilic lactobacilli and Blue-green moulds present naturally in the milk and the ripening rooms; adding any fungal culture is banned do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main stepat least 2.5 monthsSet[strach-2013][strach-2023]Ripen
Temperature4–10 °CReported[strach-onaf]Ripen

What makes this one different

Built from two curds made about 12 hours apart, one warm and one cold, layered in one mould; its blue veins come only from moulds already present, as adding fungal cultures is banned.

Composition after 75 days
Moisture 44.0–53.0 %; protein 17.0–23.0 %; fat at least 48 % of dry matter
Size
25–28 cm across, heel 10–18 cm, 4–7 kg

Related ferments

Safety

Made from raw whole milk and ripened at least 75 days. The specification says acid whey is traditionally used as a degreasing agent to clean the heating vat and utensils. The CDC says people at higher risk, including pregnant women, people 65 or older and people with weak immunity, should avoid raw-milk cheese unless it is heated to 165 °F (74 °C) or until steaming hot.

History and sources

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

The ONAF sheet says the two-curd method began as a way to use stracchino curd left over when one milking gave too little for a whole cheese; the two-curd method itself is described in the application as ancient.

  1. [strach-2013] European Commission 2013, publication of an application and single document 'Strachitunt', EC No IT-PDO-0005-01047-19.10.2012, OJ C 290, 5.10.2013spec
  2. [strach-2016] European Commission 2016, amendment application and single document 'Strachitunt', OJ C 103, 18.3.2016spec
  3. [strach-2023] European Commission 2023, application for approval of an amendment, 'Strachitunt' PDO, OJ C 82, 6.3.2023spec
  4. [strach-onaf] ONAF (national organisation of cheese tasters), technical sheet 'Strachitunt'web
  5. [cdc-listeria] US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Preventing Listeria Infectiongov