Past Newsletters

Vol 4 No 7

Provolone Aged Over One Year!

Like Mozzarella, Provolone is pasta filata (pulled or stretched curd cheese), but unlike Mozzarella there are two kinds of Provolone. There is a Dolce Provolone – a young (typically aged for two to three months), semisoft, and smooth table cheese that is mild in flavor and velvety on the tongue. And there is what you are about to taste – a Piccante (piquant) Provolone which can be coagulated using the rennet from a goat, lamb or calf – or a combination. These rennets as well as the aging process give it a stronger flavor. Usually Piccante is aged for six to twelve months - although we have seen Italian Provolone aged as long as two years.

Italian-style Provolone can be made with buffalo or cows’ milk, or a mixture of the two - either of which may, or may not, be pasteurized. Sometimes it’s lightly smoked using the branches of applewood. As you can see, there is room for quite a bit of variation in the ingredients, as well as the process, so this is a cheese that definitely bears the mark of each artisan.

The Art of a Cheesemonger

In a nut shell - if you take Mozzarella, hand-rub the surface with brine, bind it with rope and hang it up in a room with the proper temperature and humidity, in time it will turn into an entirely different cheese, something very close to Provolone.

But here’s how they do it in Italy. After using his unique combination of rennets to coagulate the milk, the Cheesemonger cuts the newly formed curd into leaf-like slices, which are first scaled and then kneaded like dough. He works the dough until it spins and becomes elastic, and then it is pressed and molded to prepare it for aging. Each one of these fine Italian cheeses is individually hand shaped by an artisan Cheesemonger. He has the delicate task of molding the cheese in such a way as to avoid bubbles of air or liquid in the paste, thereby achieving a smooth and uniform surface. Next the cheeses are immersed in a salt bath, and the length of time may vary. When they are withdrawn from the brine, they are washed with cold water, and wrapped and secured in rope. Now they are ready to be aged, or smoked and then aged. Now, as they are suspended from the rope to be slowly cured in the aging chamber, they are clearly recognized as Provolone. The magic is in each artisans hands!

Auricchio Provolone

In 1877 in San Giuseppe Vesuviano near Naples, a company named “Auricchio” was founded by Gennaro Auricchio, the inventor of a special rennet, or as people said, the "secret of don Gennaro,” which gives Auricchio Provolone its unique taste. Auricchio Provolone gained fame quickly and by the end of the 19th century, the surname of its producer had become a byword for the cheese itself.

Provolone was originally the traditional cheese of Southern Italy. Production had already spread to the Po Valley and the area between Brescia and Cremona in particular, by the end of the nineteenth century. Its name derives from the Neapolitan words “prova” or “provola,” which mean globe shaped. Provolones are created in a variety of globe-like shapes, in a range of sizes from half pound melons to 200 pound torpedo shapes.

Your authentic Italian-style Provolone is a grating cheese, full-bodied and buttery with a slight snap. Aged Italian Provolones are sooo much more flavorful than standard issue sandwich provolone - they really should have a different name! Made into huge "salamis" and then aged for over a year, this succulent, sharp, buttery, flavor will be the star of your antipasto plates. If you've only tried the soft, supermarket "deli" version of Provolone, this cheese will be a revelation. Serve it with Italian olives and thin slices of Prosciutto di Parma, and your friends will feel like they've discovered a whole new Provolone persona - Provolone as they eat it in Italy!

Rich in Heritage - Short on History

Leyden cheese, like Edam, originates from the Dutch homeland in the area around the city of Leiden (in Holland it is spelled Leiden, but everywhere else Leyden). This cheese, like its cousin Edam, has a rich heritage, and extraordinary quality goes into each step of Leyden cheesemaking. Just like Edam, it is made from rich, skimmed milk, but this is where the similarities end.

Leyden cheese has the additional ingredient of creamy buttermilk and is a deliciously firm, subtly spicy tasting dairy treat - unique in its flavor because of the cumin and caraway seeds used to season it. As Leyden cheese ages, the cumin seeds draw out whey from the curds, so it has a drier, firmer texture than Edam. In Holland it is known as Cumin Cheese, but because of its popularity around the city of Leiden it is exported, under the name of Leyden.

Its history is quite mysterious; no one seems to know how it came about. One popular theory is that an apprentice cheesemaker was munching on some cumin seeds, a very popular spice in Holland, and accidentally dropped a handful into the cheese vat. In fear of being fired, he didn’t tell the cheesemaker and when the cheese was tasted, they all loved it! Probably it’s not how it happened, but I guess we’ll never know.

Monks Inspired by the Moon

For over 2,000 years, since the Romans ate caseus Helveticus (Helvetian cheese), cheese making has been inherent in the lifestyle of those who have inhabited the region we now call Switzerland. The rich and lush pastures in the Alpine areas have long been associated with dairy farming. More than 100 different varieties of cheese are produced in Switzerland - not mass produced. Cheeses like Sapsago are made in small, strictly controlled dairies, each under the direction of a master cheese maker with a federal degree – no wonder rustic, full flavored Swiss cheeses are considered to be some of the best in the world!

And it’s no wonder that the Swiss have turned out yet another exceptional cheese! In the USA, we call this cheese Sapsago (sap-SAY-goh). It’s also known as Grüner Käse (green cheese), Glarnerkäser, Krauterkäse and Schbzieger in other countries. But green cheese – isn’t that supposed to be what the moon is made of?

Sapsago, unique to the Swiss, is always shaped in a small cone, green-grey in color, rock hard… and hard to find. Its color and its pungent spicy flavor can be primarily attributed to the addition of herbs - either clover-blue melitot (melilotis coerulea) or fenugreek. According to holisticonline.com, fenugreek, which you can buy as a powder for seasoning other foods, is credited with many curative powers, including the inhibition of cholesterol absorption and synthesis. The seeds, rich in dietary fiber, can also lower blood sugar levels. And if that isn’t enough good news, you can revel in the fact that compared to most cheeses, Sapsago is virtually fat free!

Sapsago is made from an aged type of young cows’ milk cheese called Zieger, which is skimmed milk, or whey, or a combination, and therefore is very low in fat (about 3%). This cheese is produced in the mountains of the canton of Glarus, Switzerland where it was invented by Monks during the 16th century. To make it, the curd is pressed, completely dried, ground into a powder, and then mixed with either fenugreek or the alpine clover, which has a taste similar to sage. The mixture is pressed into molds to become hard little 3-ounce cones, which are wrapped in silver foil. You’ve got to wonder what the monks used for wrapping.

This very special cheese – we’ve never heard of cheese being made in this fashion before – is used as a grating cheese and sprinkled on bread, and used in many local dishes in the canton of Glarus. Try it on salads and pasta. Sapsago can be refrigerated for several months, and we are told that it keeps almost indefinitely at room temperature – that is, if no one is hungry. Perhaps the herbs act as a preservative? This cheese, like many other hard cheeses, can be frozen if wrapped well, and will grate easily without thawing, so you can always keep hard cheeses on hand.

Old Age is Good

Aging cheese is a lot like making soup stock - the longer you let the stock simmer, the more moisture evaporates, and the more you concentrate the flavors in the remaining liquid. When we can get the cheesemakers to give their cheese a little extra aging, we stand a good chance of getting our hands on something really special. The texture will of course be drier, and the flavors more intensely condensed - much more interesting, with higher high notes, lower low notes, and longer, livelier finishes. The best of the bunch are the aged wheels, because the natural amino acids have crystallized into tiny crunchy little flavor crystals - unbelievably delicious!

Ask any artisan cheesemaker how they prefer to eat their own cheese, and they will probably tell you they like the really old stuff. Yet it's increasingly difficult to find well aged cheeses these days. We’ve asked many cheesemakers, “why do you sell it off so young?” - especially since they like their cheese well aged? Nearly all of them offered up the same answers. Cheesemakers are under pressure to turn their milk into money as quickly as possible, and there is an erroneous belief that Americans "don't like strong flavors," so Europeans hold their most flavorful cheeses off the US market. Well you can count on In Pursuit of Cheese to find for you only the very best cheeses in the world, and although we include many wonderful ones that don’t require a great deal of aging, most of our selections do.

Tasting Notes

Dutch Leyden flavored with caraway and/or cumin seeds, has an aromatic flavor that contrasts well with the creamy, nutty character of the cheese. Its spicy tang makes it a delicious snack, especially when served with a dark bread and beer! Go to beermonthclub.com and check out all of marvelous microbrews that you could enjoy with your Leyden cheese!

Sapsago is valued as a low-fat complement to pasta and baked dishes, and for grating to add flavor to salads, vegetables, noodle dishes, and soups. It is used to flavor spreads and dips for crackers, and can be mixed with other cheeses such as Quark or Ricotta to create a cream spread. Try it with Mascarpone for salad dressing. It can also be blended into butter, yogurt, or cream cheese. The Swiss eat this distinctive cheese on fresh buttered bread.

Piccante Provolone, what you are tasting today, is a harder cheese, and easy to grate over pizzas and pastas. It melts best when shredded. Try it with some red grapes, pears, figs, tomatoes, roasted red peppers, olives or hearty breads drizzled with olive oil. Accompany it with Merlot, Chianti, light-bodied Pinot Noir, or Syrah which you can find at winemonthclub.com!