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Fermentation Atlas

Cheese from Italy, the whole of Sardinia and Lazio, and the province of Grosseto in Tuscany

Pecorino Romano PDOPecorino Romano

Fresh whole ewe milk, raw or thermised, is soured with scotta-innesto, a daily starter grown in the whey left from ricotta making, and set at 38–40 °C with lamb paste rennet. The curd is broken to the size of a wheat or rice grain, cooked at 45–50 °C, pressed into tall wheels and salted dry or in brine for weeks. The wheels ripen at least five months for the table and eight months for grating. Made in 8 steps over 7.3 months. The longest step, ripen, takes at least 5 months (MASAF 2026) and runs at 6–12 °C (MASAF 2026). Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. lactis do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main stepat least 5 monthsSet[pr-disc-2026]Ripen
Temperature6–12 °CSet[pr-disc-2026]Ripen

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe specification gives no amounts. A finished wheel weighs 20–35 kg, 25–35 cm across and 25–40 cm high.
Fresh whole ewe milk · From the production area; at least half of the ewes' feed dry matter comes from the area[pr-disc-2026]
Scotta-innesto starter · Native lactic cultures from the area, grown in scotta; may be topped up with genetically identified strains from the same area[pr-disc-2026][chessa2021]
Lamb paste rennet · From lambs reared and slaughtered in the production area[pr-disc-2026]
Salt · Dry and/or brine[pr-disc-2026]
Starter: scotta-innesto, a natural thermophilic starter prepared daily by the cheesemaker

Total time across the recorded steps: 7.3 months

Start
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up to 68 °C

What changes: Whole ewe milk goes into the vat, raw or briefly warmed

Step 1 of 8
Collect and thermise the milk
Time
Not documented
Temperature
up to 68 °C
Reported
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria
S. thermophilus
L. delbrueckii
L. reuteri

Made from October to July. The 2026 specification allows thermisation but gives no temperature; the 68 °C limit comes from the ONAF sheet of the earlier rules. Output: whole ewe 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 pecorini, it is soured with scotta-innesto, a thermophilic starter grown each day in the whey left from ricotta, and its curd is cooked hot at 45–50 °C. Wheels are large and heavily salted.

Milk
Fresh whole ewe milk, raw or thermised; made from October to July
Ripening
Table at least 5 months, grating at least 8 months, Riserva at least 18 months
Composition
Fat above 36 % of dry matter
Size
20–35 kg; 25–35 cm across; 25–40 cm high

Related ferments

Variants

  • Da tavola (table)Ripened at least 5 months; mildly sharp.
  • Grattugiato (grated)Grated from wheels ripened at least 8 months.
  • RiservaMade December to March, ripened at least 18 months, sodium chloride at most 4 %.

Safety

The specification allows raw or thermised milk and requires at least five months of ripening before table sale. Riserva wheels may hold no more than 4 % sodium chloride after 18 months.

History and sources

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

The single document links the cheese to sheep grazing in Lazio and Sardinia since Roman times and cites Columella, Varro, Virgil and Pliny the Elder. It was registered as a PDO in 1996. The 2026 amendment rewrote the rules into nine articles, added the Riserva type and raised the cooking limit slightly.

  1. [pr-disc-2026] MASAF, Disciplinare di produzione della DOP 'Pecorino Romano' (consolidated text after the 2026 standard amendment)spec
  2. [oj-2026] European Commission 2026, Communication of approval of a standard amendment, 'Pecorino Romano' (PDO-IT-0017-AM01), Official Journal of the EU C/2026/4125, 2 September 2026spec
  3. [chessa2021] Chessa L., Paba A., Daga E., Dupré I., Comunian R. 2021, Biodiversity and safety assessment of half-century preserved natural starter cultures for Pecorino Romano PDO cheese, Microorganisms 9(7):1363paper
  4. [onaf-sheet] ONAF technical sheet, Pecorino Romano DOP (based on the specification before 2026)web