Parmigiano Reggiano is a premium cheese produced solely in certain Italian regions, including Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Bologna, and Mantua. The farms in these areas adhere to stringent cattle feeding guidelines, ensuring only locally sourced forage is used. This excludes silage, fermented feeds, or animal flour, preserving the cheese’s quality and authenticity.
The cheese-making process entails transferring milk into copper vats, incorporating rennet and whey starter, fragmenting the curd into granules using a 'spino' tool, and then cooking at 55 degrees Celsius. The granules are formed into a mass, shaped into twin wheels, wrapped in linen, and placed in moulds for shaping.
Each wheel receives a casein plate with a unique code, providing full traceability. A marking band then records the production month and year, the cheese factory number, and dotted inscriptions around the wheel’s edge, verifying its authenticity.
The wheels are then salted through osmosis in a water and salt solution, concluding the production and beginning the maturation phase. In this period, the cheese acquires its distinctive flavours and textures, culminating in the celebrated Parmigiano Reggiano. This maturation is vital for the cheese’s quality and taste, culminating in a product cherished by connoisseurs globally.
The maturation of Parmigiano-Reggiano is a deliberate process, aligned with the natural cycle of the seasons.
The cheese offers a diverse array of flavours that include sweet, nutty, earthy, and grassy notes. The colour of the cheese can also change based on the aging process, ranging from a soft white-yellow to a warm golden-brown. An interesting characteristic of this cheese is its granular texture, which allows it to dissolve effortlessly in the mouth.
