Asiago is a cheese mostly produced in Veneto and it is a medium fat cheese, suitable for long ripening. This cheese is a typical local product of the Asiago's tableland and is made from cow's milk. The Asiago cheese has been produced since the 1000s when the inhabitants used to call it Pegorin (which literally means 'sheep' in the local dialect) because it was made only from sheep's milk. From 1700 the cheesemakers introduced the use of cow's milk. The old type of this cheese is called d'Allevo.
The cheese is of medium fat and shows straw-yellow rind. The Asiago DOP has few irregular holes. It is a medium aromatic cheese, but its aromatic and spicy features increase with ageing.
GEOGRAPHICAL ORIGINS
Vedelago (Treviso), Veneto - Italy.
INGREDIENTS
Cow's milk, salt, rennet, preservative, preservative in crust coloring in crust E 150b (inedible crust).
HOW IT'SM MADE
The raw or pasteurized milk comes from two different semi-skimmed milk yields. The milk used to make Asiago DOP is inoculated with milk enzymes. Milk is curdled by adding calf rennet at a temperature of 33-37°C. After this, curd is milled in small granules the size of a marble ball. The paste is removed from the furnaces and laid in moulds. The Asiago cheese is then salted in brine.
AGING
Long.
PAIRINGS
Use the Asiago cheese for risottos and polenta. It is also excellent with apples and jams. The wine we suggest to pair it with is the Ripasso della Valpolicella.
STORAGE
In the fridge at 4°C / 8°C.
FORMAT
About 100 g, vacuum packed. When opening the vacuum bag, let it breathe for 10 minutes before consuming.
