Making Parmigiano Reggiano...
Posted by Robert Bishop at 1/16/2008 12:00 PM and is filed under Food,life,Things to do,Culture,Italian Way 
One of the most interesting things we did while living in Italy was to tour one of the small factories that produce Parmigiano Reggiano (a staple ingredient of Italian cooking). The tour is free but must be scheduled ahead of time (which can be done by contacting the consortium (here).
Making Parmigiano Reggiano is restricted to the zone in and around Parma, Italy (and includes: Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena and part of Bologna and Mantova). The work is done locally in a cheese dairy or "Casello." This is as a rule a small building, where on average about four to ten cheeses are turned out daily. I don't know how many caselli there are producing Parmigiano Reggiano throughout this zone (a good question for the consortium).
The Casaro (or master cheese-maker) is a highly paid individual who works every day (year in and year out). His work day begins early in the morning and finishes late in the evening. The Casaro at the factory we visited had not had a vacation for 37 years. He told us that he worked the day he was married and the days when each of his two children were born. He has groomed his son-in-law to take over his responsibilities soon. The family has more money than they can spend (as evidenced by their frequent new car purchases)... I don't think I could ever do this work.
Two milkings are used in each batch of cheese. The evening milk is poured onto trays to rest throughout the night; the morning milk is used after it has rested for about an hour. A portion of the cream is skimmed off the evening milk and the two milkings are transferred to big copper kettles where the starter (a fermenting whey from the preceding batch) is added. The kettles are stirred and low heat is applied until the milk reaches a temperature of 91° F (33° C). This practice, which is very ancient, raises the acid content of the milk to bring about the correct degree of fermentation in the cheese.
The heat is then turned off and rennet (a natural extract from the stomach of sucking calves) is added to curdle the milk. (This usually takes place in 12 to 15 minutes.) The curd contains the most nutritive elements of the milk, and the liquid that remains is known as whey. The settled curd is then turned over and broken up with a sharp-edged tool known as a "spino." This operation reduces the coagulated mass to fragments the size of grains of wheat, ready for cooking.While being stirred (so as not to burn), the temperature of the curd is raised over a slow heat to 113° F (or 45° C). At just the right moment, the Casaro steps up the heat sharply until the mass reaches a temperature of 131° F (or 55° C). Again, at just the right moment he turns off the heat and the cheese-granules settle to the bottom of the kettle where they again form a solid mass.
Once the curds have collected in the bottom of the kettle, the Casaro raises the ball of cheese with a large wooden paddle and, with the help of his assistant, slips a piece of cloth under it and ties the ends of the fabric to a metal rod resting over the kettle. The cheese, which at this point weighs about 181 lbs (82 kilos), stays in this sling for a little over 10 minutes.
The Casaro then saws the cheese mass in half and each piece is suspended in a sling where they remain at rest until all of the kettles are completed.
This is a warehouse in one of the many Italian artisan factories around Parma that produce Parmigiano Reggiano. The warehouse is kept at between 59° to 68° F (15° to 20° Celsius) and 90% relative humidity, and is where each wheel of cheese will spend the next 2-3 years aging. Wheels (now weighing 80+ pounds each) must be turned over every week. The retail value of one of these wheels is between $1,000 to $1,600. You're looking at 16,500 wheels of cheese with a total value of $15 to $25 million dollars... now that's a lot of cheese!
After 11 months, the Battore (a person who can tell if the cheese is aging correctly by striking it with a small mallet) comes to test each cheese. If it passes the test (93% success rate), it can be aged further and eventually sold to the public. If not, the logo is crossed out and the cheese is sold on the secondary market (usually to pasta making factories who use it in its grated form). At 12 months each cheese is branded with the consortium logo. At 24 months, it is retested by the Battore. This time he will determine those cheeses which have tiny imperfections and those few which are destined for the longest aging. The cheese is called "nuovo" (or new) when it is aged between 12 and 18 months, "vecchio" (aged) at between 18 and 24 months aging and "stravecchio" (extra-aged) at two to three years aging.
Here we see how the blocks are cut for distribution and sale. Note that there is no wax or other substance encasing the cheese. The outer shell is just hardened cheese. Many Italians will eat the hard exterior first softening it in the water used to boil pasta or as a flavor enhancer for soups.
Making Parmigiano Reggiano is restricted to the zone in and around Parma, Italy (and includes: Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena and part of Bologna and Mantova). The work is done locally in a cheese dairy or "Casello." This is as a rule a small building, where on average about four to ten cheeses are turned out daily. I don't know how many caselli there are producing Parmigiano Reggiano throughout this zone (a good question for the consortium).
The Casaro (or master cheese-maker) is a highly paid individual who works every day (year in and year out). His work day begins early in the morning and finishes late in the evening. The Casaro at the factory we visited had not had a vacation for 37 years. He told us that he worked the day he was married and the days when each of his two children were born. He has groomed his son-in-law to take over his responsibilities soon. The family has more money than they can spend (as evidenced by their frequent new car purchases)... I don't think I could ever do this work.
Two milkings are used in each batch of cheese. The evening milk is poured onto trays to rest throughout the night; the morning milk is used after it has rested for about an hour. A portion of the cream is skimmed off the evening milk and the two milkings are transferred to big copper kettles where the starter (a fermenting whey from the preceding batch) is added. The kettles are stirred and low heat is applied until the milk reaches a temperature of 91° F (33° C). This practice, which is very ancient, raises the acid content of the milk to bring about the correct degree of fermentation in the cheese.
The heat is then turned off and rennet (a natural extract from the stomach of sucking calves) is added to curdle the milk. (This usually takes place in 12 to 15 minutes.) The curd contains the most nutritive elements of the milk, and the liquid that remains is known as whey. The settled curd is then turned over and broken up with a sharp-edged tool known as a "spino." This operation reduces the coagulated mass to fragments the size of grains of wheat, ready for cooking.While being stirred (so as not to burn), the temperature of the curd is raised over a slow heat to 113° F (or 45° C). At just the right moment, the Casaro steps up the heat sharply until the mass reaches a temperature of 131° F (or 55° C). Again, at just the right moment he turns off the heat and the cheese-granules settle to the bottom of the kettle where they again form a solid mass.
Once the curds have collected in the bottom of the kettle, the Casaro raises the ball of cheese with a large wooden paddle and, with the help of his assistant, slips a piece of cloth under it and ties the ends of the fabric to a metal rod resting over the kettle. The cheese, which at this point weighs about 181 lbs (82 kilos), stays in this sling for a little over 10 minutes.
The Casaro then saws the cheese mass in half and each piece is suspended in a sling where they remain at rest until all of the kettles are completed.
Still wrapped in cloth, the cheeses are then transfered to temporary wooden molds and eventually to teflon
molds in the shape of a wheel. The cloth wrapping helps to maintain warmth, as any drastic
change in temperature would kill the bacilli. After a few hours the cloth is removed and a stencil embossed
with the words "Parmigiano-Reggiano" is inserted between the cheese and
the mold.
This is a warehouse in one of the many Italian artisan factories around Parma that produce Parmigiano Reggiano. The warehouse is kept at between 59° to 68° F (15° to 20° Celsius) and 90% relative humidity, and is where each wheel of cheese will spend the next 2-3 years aging. Wheels (now weighing 80+ pounds each) must be turned over every week. The retail value of one of these wheels is between $1,000 to $1,600. You're looking at 16,500 wheels of cheese with a total value of $15 to $25 million dollars... now that's a lot of cheese!
After 11 months, the Battore (a person who can tell if the cheese is aging correctly by striking it with a small mallet) comes to test each cheese. If it passes the test (93% success rate), it can be aged further and eventually sold to the public. If not, the logo is crossed out and the cheese is sold on the secondary market (usually to pasta making factories who use it in its grated form). At 12 months each cheese is branded with the consortium logo. At 24 months, it is retested by the Battore. This time he will determine those cheeses which have tiny imperfections and those few which are destined for the longest aging. The cheese is called "nuovo" (or new) when it is aged between 12 and 18 months, "vecchio" (aged) at between 18 and 24 months aging and "stravecchio" (extra-aged) at two to three years aging.
Here we see how the blocks are cut for distribution and sale. Note that there is no wax or other substance encasing the cheese. The outer shell is just hardened cheese. Many Italians will eat the hard exterior first softening it in the water used to boil pasta or as a flavor enhancer for soups.
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