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# 63 • JUNE 28 , 2015
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ITALIAN FLAVORS:
PECORINO TOSCANO
By Consorzio Tutela del Pecorino Toscano DOP with MiPAAF
Pecorino is an exquisite product with a long tradition. Ancient testimonies still exist that
praise its qualities: in older
times it was called “Marzolino” and in 1475 the humanist
Bartolomeo Platina acclaimed
it as the best cheese in Italy.
In 1832, Ignazio Malenotti, a
member of the Linnean Society of Paris, published the
“Shepherd’s Handbook” in
which he described the best
method for making Pecorino
Toscano cheese.
The price of cheese steadily
increased from the late 19th
to the early 20th century and
sheep farming was resumed in
Tuscany until the 1930s, when
it suffered a serious decline.
ep while those from Tuscany
In the 1960s, some Sardinian focus on other breeds.
shepherds were attracted by
the abandoned pastures and
transferred their assets and tra- Production
ditions there. Thanks to them, PDO Pecorino Toscano is a soft
sheep farming has enjoyed or semi-hard paste cheese,
steady growth ever since. To- made exclusively with whole
day, the sector is in a situation sheep’s milk from local farms.
of equilibrium: the Sardinian The fresh variety has a yellow
shepherds raise Sardinian she- rind with a soft, white paste
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and a characteristic aromatic
flavour, described as “sweet”.
The aged variety can have a
yellow, red or black rind and is
harder, with a pale yellow paste and a flavour that is fragrant
and intense but never spicy.
The marking is placed on the
rim of the form, using ink for
the soft cheese and branding
for the semi-hard paste variety.