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Fermentation Atlas

Cheese from Italy, Veneto

Casatella Trevigiana PDOCasatella Trevigiana

A soft, rindless fresh cheese of whole cow milk from Treviso province. The milk is soured with a local milk starter, set with bovine rennet at 34–40 °C, cut twice and drained in warm rooms, then salted. The cheeses mature only 4–8 days in a cold room, which gives a sweet, milky taste with a slight sour edge. Made in 9 steps over 4.2 days – 8.3 days. The longest step, mature in a cold room, takes 4–8 days (MIPAAF 2019) and runs at 2–8 °C (MIPAAF 2019). Salt is 0.8–1.2 % (MIPAAF 2019). Streptococcus thermophilus and Thermophilic lactobacilli, mainly Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. lactis do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step4–8 daysSet[casatella-disc]Mature in a cold room
Temperature2–8 °CSet[casatella-disc]Mature in a cold room
Salt0.8–1.2 %Set[casatella-disc]Salt in brine or in the vat

Recipe

Amounts from a sourceThe specification sets the starter as 1–5 % of the milk but gives no batch size. A large cheese weighs 1.8–2.2 kg and a small one 0.2–0.7 kg.
Whole cow milk · Friesian, Italian Red Pied, Italian Brown and Burlina cows; fat above 3.2 %; processed within 48 hours of milking[casatella-sd2020]
1–5 % of the milkMilk starter (lattoinnesto) from the production area · Milk heated to 65–68 °C, cooled and left to sour; strains of Streptococcus thermophilus and some thermophilic lactobacilli[casatella-disc]
Bovine rennet, liquid or powder · Strength 1:10,000 to 1:20,000[casatella-disc]
Sea salt · Brine of 16–20 °Baumé, dry salt, or 0.8–1.2 % of the curd mass added in the vat[casatella-disc]
Starterlocal milk starter (lattoinnesto) of Streptococcus thermophilus and thermophilic lactobacilli

Total time across the recorded steps: 4.2 days – 8.3 days

Start
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70–75 °C

What changes: Whole cow milk from Treviso farms, used raw or briefly pasteurised

Step 1 of 9
Collect and, if chosen, pasteurise the milk
Time
Not documented
Temperature
70–75 °C
Set
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
S. thermophilus
Lactobacilli begin
Lactobacilli
L. delbrueckii

Milk is chilled on the farm, and cheesemaking must start within 48 hours of milking. Output: whole cow milk.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

What makes this one different

Firmer than most fresh cheeses and never spreadable. A long rest after the first cut, a finer second cut and a longer salting push out more whey, and it matures longer and warmer (4–8 days at 2–8 °C) than other fresh cheeses.

Milk
Whole cow milk from Treviso province, raw or pasteurised
Ripening
4–8 days at 2–8 °C
Composition
Moisture 53–60 %; fat 18–27 % of the whole cheese (the 2019 national text prints 18–28 %); protein over 12 %
Size
Large round 1.8–2.2 kg, 18–22 cm across; small round 0.20–0.70 kg, 5–12 cm across

Related ferments

Variants

  • Large round1.8–2.2 kg, 18–22 cm across, 5–8 cm high.
  • Small round0.2–0.7 kg, 5–12 cm across, 4–6 cm high.

Safety

Highly perishable and sold only packed. The milk may be raw or pasteurised at 70–75 °C, so keep it cold and eat it fresh.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Casatella began as a home cheese on small Treviso farms. Milk, often skimmed first to make butter, was curdled in a copper pot over the hearth. The name is said to come from 'casa' (house), for this home cheesemaking.

  1. [casatella-sd2020] European Commission 2020, Casatella Trevigiana PDO, amendment application and single document (PDO-IT-0348-AM02), Official Journal of the EU C 171, 19.5.2020, p. 29spec
  2. [casatella-disc] MIPAAF 2019, Disciplinare di produzione 'Casatella Trevigiana' DOP, amended text of 22.11.2019 (copy held by ONAF)spec