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Fermentation Atlas

Cheese from Italy, Veneto, province of Belluno

Formaggio ComelicoComelico

Formaggio Comelico is a semi-fat, semi-cooked cow cheese from the upper Cadore. The milk is skimmed by letting the cream rise, pasteurised at 72 °C, soured with the dairy's own milk starter and set with calf rennet at 30 °C. The curd is cooked twice, pressed, brined and sold from 1 month to over 5 months old. Made in 7 steps over 30 days. The longest step, ripen, takes at least 30 days (Regione Veneto) and runs at 7–15 °C (ONAF (Organizzazione Nazionale Assaggiatori F…). Lactic bacteria of the dairy's own milk starter does most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main stepat least 30 daysSet[veneto-atlante][onaf-sheet]Ripen
Temperature7–15 °CReported[onaf-sheet]Ripen

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe sources give temperatures but no amounts. A wheel weighs 4–6 kg.
Cow milk from two milkings · Mostly Brown Swiss cows; skimmed raw by creaming, then pasteurised at 72 °C[veneto-atlante][onaf-sheet]
Lattoinnesto · The dairy's own natural milk starter[onaf-sheet]
Liquid calf rennet[onaf-sheet]
Salt · As a brine bath[veneto-atlante]
Starter: dairy's own natural milk starter (lattoinnesto)

Total time across the recorded steps: 30 days

Start
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72 °C

What changes: The cream rises and is skimmed off, then the milk is pasteurised

Step 1 of 7
Skim and pasteurise the milk
Time
Not documented
Temperature
72 °C
Set
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria

Output: part-skimmed, pasteurised 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

Unlike most PAT mountain cheeses it is now made by one dairy, the Latteria Genzianella, which took over the village dairies in 1979. The milk is creamed raw but pasteurised before cheesemaking, and the curd is cooked in two stages.

Rind
Thin to fairly thin, not fully smooth, straw yellow
Size
4–6 kg; Ø 30 cm, height 7–10 cm
Ripening
Fresco 1–3 months, mezzano over 3 months, vecchio over 5 months

Related ferments

Variants

  • Fresco1–3 months; softer, with more marked eyes.
  • MezzanoOver 3 months.
  • VecchioOver 5 months; hard and flaky, with hazelnut notes.

Safety

The milk is pasteurised at 72 °C before cheesemaking.

History and sources

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

The village dairies of the Comelico handed their milk to the Latteria Genzianella, founded in 1979, which kept making the cheese the old way. Veneto listed it as a traditional product in 2012.

  1. [veneto-atlante] Regione Veneto, Atlante dei prodotti agroalimentari tradizionali del Veneto, Formaggi, Formaggio Comelico, p. 147gov
  2. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (Organizzazione Nazionale Assaggiatori Formaggi), technical sheet Formaggio Comelicoweb
  3. [onaf] ONAF, scheda formaggio 'Formaggio Comelico' (id 1059)web