Italian Cheese Guide: Explore Diverse Varieties & Regional Specialties

Estimated reading time: 12 minutes

Cheeses from Italy have found their place in the hearts of foodies worldwide. There are hundreds of cheeses in Italy, made virtually everywhere – from the alpine meadows of the north to the picturesque rolling hills of Tuscany to Sicily’s romantic plains. Parmigiano, Mozzarella, and Provolone only scratch the surface of Italian dairy. Cured and soft, intensely fragrant and mild, ideal for shredding or perfect for spreading, made with cow, goat, sheep, or buffalo milk, there are countless cheese varieties in Italy. Each region offers its specialties and spins on the classics.

Slow Food

Every two years, Slow Food brings cheese lovers, affineurs, producers, and chefs to Bra, Piedmont, for Cheese — one of Europe’s great gatherings devoted to raw-milk cheeses, artisan dairy traditions, and biodiversity. Quality is central to Italian cheese culture, and many of the country’s most important cheeses are protected by European geographical indication schemes. DOP/PDO status links production, origin, and method to a defined area; IGP/PGI is broader but still protects regional identity. These labels help distinguish true regional cheeses from generic imitations.

While it would be impossible to cover all of Italy’s amazing cheeses, here is a look at some you will likely encounter on your gourmet tour of Italy, along with other more classic gems.

Southern Italy: Campania, Calabria, and Puglia

Burrata: A Puglian cheese with a mozzarella shell and a rich center of cream and stracciatella, burrata is best eaten as fresh as possible. It is indulgent, milky, and usually served simply, with little more than good olive oil, tomatoes, or fresh bread.

Caciocavallo: A Southern Italian cheese shaped like a mini gourd, it comes in plain or smoked varieties. It is a hand-shaped cheese (“Pasta Filata”) made from cow’s milk and can be eaten after three months of ripening. It can be consumed while young (usually after two months) and when aged (up to two years). Five southern provinces, Campania, Calabria, Molise, Basilicata, and Puglia, all produce Caciocavallo Silano DOP cheese.

Canestrato Pugliese: In Foggia province, in Italy’s southern “heel,” known as Apulia (Puglia in Italian), cheesemakers craft a delicious, flaky sheep’s cheese using a technique that dates back to Homer’s Odyssey! These cheeses are then aged for two months to one year, resting on fennel stalks. With an intense bouquet and a Parmigiano-like texture, this cheese pairs well with a rich Puglian red from the Tormaresca estate.

Mozzarella: Authentic Mozzarella is made with water buffalo milk. When made with cow’s milk, the correct term is “Fior di latte.” The magic of fresh mozzarella lies in its fleeting nature. Crafted using the “Pasta Filata” technique, curd is dipped in hot whey, then stretched and kneaded by hand. Exported mozzarella often comes in a soft, fresh ball stored in water, but this doesn’t capture its true essence. True Mozzarella di Bufala Campana is one of southern Italy’s great pleasures, especially when eaten within 24 hours of production. At the Tenuta Vannulo dairy, for example, taste just-made Buffalo milk yogurts, ice creams, and moist mozzarella “braids” (called “treccia”) — an unforgettable experience. Delicious served with heirloom tomatoes and fresh basil (called insalata caprese, or Capri salad), it’s also the world’s favorite pizza topping.

Emilia Romagna, Le Marche, and Tuscany

Casciotta d’Urbino: This cheese comes from Marche, on Italy’s Adriatic coast, and is made with 70% sheep’s milk and 30% cow’s milk. It is a young, tender cheese, usually aged only 20 to 30 days. An anecdote: Local tradition holds that Casciotta d’Urbino was a favorite of Michelangelo.

Marzolino del Chianti: This young, soft cheese is made in the lovely Chianti wine country from raw ewe’s milk. The intense flavor goes great with a luscious Riserva from Chianti’s Badia Coltibuono estate.

Parmigiano Reggiano: “Parmesan” is perhaps Italy’s best-known cheese. Parmigiano Reggiano boasts a strict appellation system, limiting production to specific regions: Bologna (west of the Reno River), Mantua (east of the Po River), Modena, Parma, and Reggio Emilia. This prestigious cheese comes in a wide range of qualities and prices. The most basic version is aged for 12 months, while highly sought-after wheels can reach 36 months of aging, reflecting an impeccable production process. Parma is the heart of Parmigiano production; they often serve roughly cut chunks of cheese with sparkling wine, an excellent combination. You can grate it over pasta, salad, soup, or bread, or toss the rind into a stew for added flavor.

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Pecorino di Pienza: This is a superb example of Pecorino; this sheep’s cheese can be sold fresh (with a red rind) or aged (with a black rind). It is also often sold in small pieces in extra-virgin Tuscan olive oil, in jars.

 

Lombardy

Bagòs: A delicious cheese is made in the Val Caffaro in eastern Lombardy. “Bagòs” in Brescian dialect means “Bagolino,” and Bagolino refers to the little village where this cheese was invented. Cow’s milk is used to make this yellow cheese (saffron-colored), which is often aged for one to two years. It pairs well with Franciacorta bubbly.

Bitto: Made near the Valtellina wine-producing region of northern Lombardy, Bitto is a wonderful cow’s cheese that can be “young” (70 days) or aged (“stagionato”) for up to ten years, with an intense flavor and bouquet. A small amount of goat’s milk can also be included.

Gorgonzola: A pungent “Italian Blue Cheese,” Gorgonzola is an intensely flavorful semi-soft cheese best eaten on salads, with fruit like grapes or pears, or spread on bread. It’s excellent, paired with rich Amarone and Recioto wines, and made in Lombardy and Piedmont.

Magnuca: This Lombard cheese is made with cow’s milk and comes from Val Chiavenna. It can be aged for as little as one month or as long as one year. It can be served in slices to accompany polenta—it pairs well with robust red wines from Valtellina.

Mascarpone: Mascarpone is technically not a cheese; it is made with cream rather than milk, in a process similar to yogurt-making. The texture is soft, ultra-creamy, and saltless, so it is used for many desserts. Mascarpone is the key ingredient in Tiramisu, for example. It is also used in savory sauces to add a depth of flavor.

Taleggio: This short, squat soft cheese comes in rectangular shapes and is made from pure cow’s milk. The most famous characteristic of Taleggio is its powerful aroma. Maturing takes about 40 days, and Taleggio is often used in cooking (especially in risottos) for its delicious, almost fruity flavor. The Val Taleggio (the namesake) is in Lombardy, near Lake Como, but Taleggio is made throughout northern Italy, including Piedmont (Novara and Verbania) and the Veneto (Treviso).

Northeastern Italy

Asiago: You’ll find this mild, hard cheese shredded over pasta or atop risotto. This pale cheese is made with cow’s milk and can be aged for up to twenty-four months. Asiago Mezzano is six months old, Vecchio is one year old, and Stravecchio is two years old. Asiago is produced in the Veneto (Padova, Vicenza, Treviso) and in Alto Adige (Trento).

Montasio: This delicious cheese is made with cow’s milk in the Veneto (Belluno, Treviso, and Padova) and Friuli (Udine, Trieste, Gorizia, Pordenone, etc.) The “stagionatura” (aging) is at least two months, and Montasio can be aged up to one year. The intense, concentrated flavor pairs nicely with Friuli’s “Super Whites,” such as Bastianich Vespa.

Italian Islands: Sardinia and Sicily

Fiore Sardo: “Sardinian Flower,” this sheep’s cheese (Pecorino) is firm and has the savory nuances of Mediterranean herbs. Aged from one to six months, this cheese is of the highest quality and is made using historic techniques.

Pecorino: While Pecorino is made in many different regions of Italy (Pecorino Romano from Rome, Pecorino Toscano from Tuscany, and Pecorino Siciliano from Sicily, Pecorino dei Monti Sibillini from Marche, Pecorino del Sannio from Molise, for example), Pecorino Sardo from Sardinia is the one most exported. “Pecorino” refers to any Italian cheese made from sheep’s milk, as “Pecora” means sheep. Pecorino is a hard, pressed cheese that is often aged. In general, it takes up to a year for the cheese to mature, and during this time, Pecorino’s characteristic tangy and savory flavor comes into its own. Pecorino cheese is used in various ways- served on its own in wedges with wine, as an ingredient in many sauces, including pesto, and grated into risottos and over pasta.

Piacintinu: This unique saffron-colored Sicilian cheese is a hard sheep’s cheese made between October and June and served fresh. It is spiked with peppercorns and pairs well with a Sicilian white like Planeta’s buttery Chardonnay.

Ragusano: This cheese comes from the Sicilian city of “Ragusa” (a beautiful place known for its Baroque architecture). Cow’s milk from the special Modicana breed is used to make this small-production cheese, which is aged for three months to one year.

Piedmont

Bra: This cheese is renowned as one of the finest in the Piedmont region, originating from the area surrounding Bra, the birthplace of the Slow Food Movement. Bra Duro tends to be the nuttiest, although all three styles are worth trying.

There are different types of Bra cheese:

• Bra Tenero (young, usually about 45 days)
• Bra Duro (aged generally for six months)
• Bra Nostrale.

Blu del Moncenisio: Blu del Moncenisio is a streaked blue Alpine cheese made from unpasteurized cow’s milk around Moncenisio. It is excellent with late-harvest sweet wines.

Castelmagno: Named after the village where it is made, this is one of Piedmont’s most renowned cheeses. Made in the Alps, in the Grana Valley, from the milk of Piedmontese cows, Castelmagno is traditionally produced from two separate milkings and aged naturally in caves for two to five months. The cheese is crumbly and pearly, with blue streaks. Besides being an excellent dessert cheese, it is also used in gourmet cooking.

Raschera d’Alpeggio: It is named after the Raschera Alps (Cuneo province, Piedmont). Made from cow’s milk, the aged version has a pronounced, herbaceous, and moderately spicy taste—it pairs well with juicy Dolcetto d’Alba.

 

Valle d’Aosta

Fontina: This semi-soft cow’s milk cheese, made in the French-influenced Aosta Valley in northwest Italy, is a favorite for gourmet fondue lovers. Fontina has a wonderful, mild, nutty, and buttery flavor.

 Other Notable Italian Cheeses

Grana Padano: This cheese is the “twin” of Parmigiano Reggiano. However, while Parmigiano Reggiano is only made in a small protected appellation in Emilia Romagna, Grana Padano is made all over the plains of Northern Italy from Piedmont, Lombardy, Trentino, Veneto, and, of course, Emilia Romagna. This affects flavor ever so slightly in the types of grass the cows eat in the varying regions. Grana Padano is also a little paler than Parmigiano.

Ricotta – Made throughout the Italian peninsula, Ricotta is made by combining whey from other cheeses. The spreadable, soft Ricotta is most often used as a cooking ingredient; it’s a must for dishes like lasagna, manicotti, and cheesecake. Variations of traditional Ricotta include “Ricotta Forte” (Puglia), “Ricotta Affumicata Sarda” (Sardinia), “Ricotta Infornata” (Sicily and Puglia), “Ricotta Ossolana” (Piedmont), and “Ricotta Salata” (Sicily, Sardinia, and Puglia).

Italian Cheese Terms Glossary / Dictionary

Affumicato – smoked
Amarognolo – slightly bitter, term aficionados use
Aromatico – aromatic
Aspro – sharp
Bufala (Formaggio di) – buffalo’s cheese
Burroso – buttery
Cagliata – curd
Caglio – rennet
Capra – (formaggio di)- goat’s cheese
Caprino – fresh goat’s cheese
Caratteristico – characteristic
Caseificio – Dairy or cheesemaker
Coltello da Formaggio – cheese knife
Delicato – delicate
Dolce – literally “sweet,” but for cheese, it is used to mean the flavors are round, neither sharp nor spicy
Duro – hard
Erborinato – blue-veined cheese, usually cow’s cheese.
Formaggio – cheese
Formaggio alle erbe – cheese with herbs
Formaggio alle noci – cheese with walnuts
Formaggio erborinato – blue cheese
Formaggi al carrello – cheese trolley
Forte – strong
Fresco – fresh, young
Fruttato – fruity
Fuso – melted
Grattugiato – grated
Intenso – intense
Ircino – used to refer to the typical flavor of goat’s cheese
Latteo – milky
Maturazione – maturation (aging)
Morbido – soft (cheese)
Muffe – cheese mold
Muschiato – used to refer to the flavor of buffalo milk
Pecora (formaggio di)- sheep’s cheese
Piccante – spicy, often used to describe certain goat cheeses
Ricotta – re-cooked, cottage cheese
Salamoia – brine
Sapido – used to describe very savory cheeses
Siero di latte – whey
Speziato – spiced, used to refer to cheeses that have a nuance of spice (such as nutmeg)
Stagionato – matured