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Fermentation Atlas

Cheese from Italy, the whole Autonomous Region of Valle d'Aosta

Valle d'Aosta Fromadzo PDOFromadzo

Fromadzo is the Aosta Valley's part-skimmed cow-milk cheese, the everyday partner of Fontina. Milk from at least two milkings rests for 12–36 hours so the cream can be taken off, then sets at 34–36 °C with natural rennet and the milk's own lactic bacteria. The curd is semi-cooked, pressed lightly in local moulds, salted over three to four weeks and ripened from two months to ten. Made in 7 steps over 2.6 months – 11 months. The longest step, ripen, takes 2–10 months (Disciplinare di produzione della denominazion…) and runs at 8–14 °C (Disciplinare di produzione della denominazion…). The milk's own dairy microflora, which the specification relies on to sour the milk and Local Lactococcus lactis starter strains; one tested mix made up 87 % (valley milk) and 70 % (alpine milk) of lactic isolates in 30-day cheeses do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step2–10 monthsSet[from-disc1995]Ripen
Temperature8–14 °CSet[from-disc1995]Ripen

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe specification fixes limits, not a recipe. Wheels are 15–30 cm across, 5–20 cm high and weigh 1–7 kg.
Cow milk from at least two milkings · Cows fed mainly on local fresh forage or hay; raw and partly skimmed[from-disc1995][vda2025]
Goat milk · Optional, in very small amounts[from-disc1995]
Natural rennet[from-disc1995]
Natural lactic cultures from the area · Optional; otherwise the milk's own microflora does the work[from-disc1995]
Salt · Dry or as brine, and salt water for cleaning the rind[from-disc1995]
Seeds or parts of aromatic plants · Optional, for flavoured types such as juniper or wild cumin[from-disc1995][vda2025]
Starter: spontaneous dairy microflora, optionally natural local lactic cultures

Total time across the recorded steps: 2.6 months – 11 months

Start
Drag the bar or press Play
shapes, not to countLactic acid bacteria

What changes: Milk rests for 12–36 hours and the cream that rises is skimmed off

Step 1 of 7
Rest the milk so the cream rises
Time
12–36 h
Set
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria
Lactococcus lactis

The resting time depends on the weather. The cream that rises is skimmed off, so the milk is partly skimmed by natural creaming.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

the milk's own lactic bacteria begin to grow

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

Fontina uses whole milk from one milking, while Fromadzo uses milk from two or more milkings that rests until its cream can be taken for butter. It is lower in fat, cooked to at most 45 °C, salted slowly over weeks, and may be flavoured with herbs or a little goat milk.

Milk
Cow milk from at least two milkings, partly skimmed by resting; a little goat milk allowed
Ripening
At least 60 days, up to 8–10 months
Size
Cylinder 15–30 cm across, 5–20 cm high, 1–7 kg
Fat in dry matter
20–35 % for the semi-fat type; below 20 % for the low-fat type

Related ferments

Variants

  • Semigrasso (semi-fat)Milk rests 12–24 hours; fat in dry matter 20–35 %.
  • Magro (low-fat)Milk rests 24–36 hours; fat in dry matter below 20 %.
  • FlavouredSeeds or parts of aromatic plants such as juniper or wild cumin added during making.
  • Mixed cow and goatA small share of goat milk added.

Safety

Fromadzo is made from raw milk. In a challenge study on Fontina, a raw-milk cheese from the same valley, E. coli O157:H7 grew during the first hours of making and fell by about 3 log during 80 days of ripening; Fromadzo ripens at least 60 days.

Hazards the sources name: Escherichia coli O157:H7, which grew during the first hours of making and fell during ripening in the sister cheese Fontina.

History and sources

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

A tasting-guild sheet notes that the 15th-century Summa lacticiniorum of Pantaleone da Confienza describes a medium-sized, thick-rinded cheese of the Aosta Valley, and that 17th-century records name a fromage commun or fromage ordinaire made beside Fontina. In 1695, during the French occupation, the local council ordered alpine pastures to make butter and lean cheese instead of Fontina. It became a designation of origin in 1995 and an EU PDO in 1996.

  1. [from-disc1995] Disciplinare di produzione della denominazione di origine del formaggio 'Valle d'Aosta Fromadzo' o 'Vallée d'Aoste Fromadzo', DM 25 settembre 1995, GURI n. 246 del 20 ottobre 1995 (copy hosted by ONAF)spec
  2. [from-eu1995] European Commission, application for registration VI/8853/95, 'Valle d'Aosta Fromadzo', EEC No G/IT/01504/95.11.27 (summary sheet, eAmbrosia attachment 72540)spec
  3. [vda2025] Regione Autonoma Valle d'Aosta, Cheese 2025, Valle d'Aosta da assaporare, sheet 'Valle d'Aosta Fromadzo DOP'gov
  4. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (Organizzazione Nazionale Assaggiatori Formaggi), scheda 'Valle d'Aosta Fromadzo DOP' (history)web
  5. [dolci2020] Dolci P. et al. 2020, Impact of Lactococcus lactis as starter culture on microbiota and metabolome profile of an Italian raw milk cheese, International Dairy Journal 110:104804 (abstract)paper
  6. [bellio2018] Bellio A. et al. 2018, Behavior of Escherichia coli O157:H7 during the manufacture and ripening of Fontina Protected Designation of Origin cheese, Journal of Dairy Science 101:4962–4970 (abstract)paper