Story and photography by Manos Angelakis

Lazio is famous for Mozzarella di Bufala (Buffalo Mozzarella) and Ricotta di Bufala – another very fresh cheese also made from buffalo milk. In Italy, buffalos are found only in the Lazio province since Roman times.

Caciocavallo di bufala is also made from buffalo milk and can be purchased either fresh or smoked. We saw it on the table, mostly in its smoked form. 

These soft cheeses are made in farms southeast from Rome, while North and West of Rome a variety of hard and semi-hard cheeses are made by an industry that has been around since Roman times. In the North, cheese is made from cow, goat, or sheep’s milk or blends of these milks. It seems that the Romans preferred goat and sheep cheeses, possibly because of the creamier consistency and easier digestibility, compared to cheeses made from cow's milk. Roman writings clearly indicate they thought the milk from animals with two teats – goats and sheep – was far superior for cheese making than the milk from animals with four teats – cows. The base ingredient and consistency of the final product determines whether it is then aged dry, preserved by brining or pickling, or eaten fresh. Roman writers recommended preserving sliced fresh cheese in grape must. Savillum, a famous Roman cheesecake was a type of focaccia made with cheese and honey. Neoclassical painter Giovanni Panini (1691-1765) bought land and a herd of sheep in the rugged Lazio hills to be assured of peace, quiet, and a ready supply of pecorino Romano, his favorite Lazio cheese.

Pecorino Romano is made from raw ewe's milk, and is aged at least 6 months. The granular paste is compact, has tiny pores and is white or straw-yellow in color. The crust is smooth and intense brown in color. The cheese has a fragrant aroma and is usually piquant in flavor.

Pepato means "with pepper". Whole black peppercorns are added to the curd during the cheese making process to create this spiced table cheese. Made with part skim ewe’s milk, it is consumed either fresh (aged less than 60 days), or aged over 5 months. A very hard (aged over 12 months) version is called Locatelli Pepato and is fruity and nutty.

Another Lazio cheese we liked is Caciotta della Sabina. It is a semi-soft or semidry cheese, depending on the producer, and we had the semi-hard version served as part of cheese appetizers. This cheese is available in the US market. It is part of a group of cheeses made from unpasteurized milk from Lazio that has been allowed to be imported to the US by the FDA. Normally, cheese from unpasteurized milk that has not been aged for a minimum of 60 days, is prohibited from entering the US food chain.

© November 2009 LuxuryWeb Magazine. All rights reserved.