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Cheese from Italy, Lombardia

Torta orobica

Whole raw cow milk from Bergamo herds, worked straight after milking, gets lactic cultures and calf rennet at 37–38 °C and sets in about 30 minutes. The curd is broken gently to hazelnut size, moulded and left to drain for about 24 hours before salting. The large flat wheels ripen about 60 days in cool, humid rooms, wiped with brine, and turn pink at the rind.

Fully documentedCheese2 monthsTraditional food product (PAT, Lombardia)Family: Washed-rind (smear-ripened) cheese family (Munster and Époisses as templates)

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe sheets give no doses. A wheel weighs up to 4–5 kg.
Whole raw cow milk of one milking, from herds in the province of Bergamo[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Lactic starter cultures[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Liquid calf rennet[onaf-sheet]
Salt, dry or as brine[pat-sheet]
StarterLactic starter cultures may be added to the milk

Total time across the recorded steps: 2 months

Start
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37–38 °C

What changes: Lactic cultures and calf rennet go into raw milk at 37–38 °C and it sets in 30 minutes

Step 1 of 5
Warm the fresh milk and add cultures and rennet
Time
30 min
Reported
Temperature
37–38 °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

Whole raw cow milk from Bergamo herds, worked straight after milking, gets lactic cultures and calf rennet at 37–38 °C and sets in about 30 minutes. The curd is broken gently to hazelnut size, moulded and left to drain for about 24 hours before salting. The large flat wheels ripen about 60 days in cool, humid rooms, wiped with brine, and turn pink at the rind. Made in 5 steps over 2 months. The longest step, ripen with brine wiping, takes 2 months (Regione Lombardia). Added lactic cultures and the mixed native lactic flora of the raw milk and Oospora crustacea, which ONAF names as the cause of the pink rind do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step2 monthsReported[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet][onaf]Ripen with brine wiping
Temperature37–38 °CReported[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]Warm the fresh milk and add cultures and rennet

What makes this one different

Much like Taleggio but much larger, and its size lets it ripen longer while staying compact. The regional text links its size to the abundant milk of the summer pastures.

Rind
Thin, moist, pink to reddish, with some grey mould spots
Size
Cylinder about 28–30 cm across, side 4–6 cm, up to 4–5 kg
Season
June–September (ONAF)

Related ferments

Safety

Made from raw milk and ripened about 60 days; the sheets give no pH or salt figures. In a study that deliberately added low levels of E. coli O157:H7 to raw milk for Cheddar and Gouda, counts fell during ageing, but it was still detectable after selective enrichment past 270 days. The authors suggest that 60 days alone does not eliminate it in those cheeses. ANSES advises pregnant women, young children, people over 65 and people with weak immunity to avoid raw-milk cheeses other than cooked pressed ones such as Gruyère or Comté.

History and sources

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

The regional text says its simple method suggests it was first made on summer pastures, where milk was plentiful and equipment scarce, which explains its larger size.

  1. [anses2022] ANSES 2022, Fromages au lait cru, quels risques pour la santé et comment mieux les prévenir (8 April 2022)gov
  2. [damico2010] D'Amico D.J., Druart M.J., Donnelly C.W. 2010, Behavior of Escherichia coli O157:H7 during the manufacture and aging of Gouda and stirred-curd Cheddar cheeses manufactured from raw milk, Journal of Food Protection 73:2217–2224 (abstract)paper
  3. [pat-sheet] Regione Lombardia, traditional food products (PAT), product text 'Torta Orobica' (copy hosted by ONAF)gov
  4. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (national organisation of cheese tasters), technical sheet 'Torta orobica'web
  5. [onaf] ONAF, cheese page 'Torta orobica' (id 1039)web