Parmesan cheese PDO 28/30 months - apx. 1 kg

ORIGIN AND PRODUCT

Parmigiano Reggiano (or Parma cheese from Reggio Emilia) dates to the Middle Ages and most historians set the date at about the XII century.

It was then that the Benedictine and Cistercian monks of Parma di Reggio Emilia began to make a hard cheese by warming their milk in large tubs. Parmigiano Reggiano is still made with the same ingredients as nine centuries ago, in the same places and using the same methods.

The product and its region are inexorably linked and this is why Parmigiano Reggiano can only be made in the provinces of Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena and parts of the provinces of Mantova and Bologna. Parmigiano Reggiano is made with high quality milk from local cows, natural rennet, salt and nothing else.

PRODUCTION

Parmigiano Reggiano is made only with the milk from highly selected cows that eat only local grasses and hay. Veal rennet and whey, two entirely natural products, are then added and the mixture is warmed for about 50 minutes in bell-shaped copper cauldrons. The curd mass that forms is extracted from the cauldron with a large muslin sheet and put into the round forms that eventually give the cheese its perfect dimensions and characteristic look.

The form is then lowered into a tub of salt water that naturally extracts the excess water and lets it absorb a small amount of salt.
The cheese is then left to age for at least 12 months inside special ageing cellars. At the end of ageing the consortium's experts examine the wheels one by one and fire brand the ones featuring the requirements for Protected Designation of Origin.
This mark is fundamental for producers and consumers because it is the only one able to offer absolute guarantee on the product's quality.