Restricted Area
The Production
Manufacture
Following an artisanal process, the milk is transferred to steel coagulationInitial stage of the cheese manufacturing process during which the proteins in warm milk are made to coagulate by the addition of an enzyme, the rennet. vats and warmed up to 30-37oC, depending on the type of product, in order not to alter the bacterial flora so that it may carry out its function in the best possible way. Selected yeasts and liquid calf rennet The rennet is an extract of animal origin that contains the proteolytic enzymes that induce the coagulation of casein. It is generally obtained from the stomach of suckling ruminants (calves, kids, lambs). Rennet is available commercially in different forms: liquid, powder, pellet, or paste.or vegetable rennet The vegetable rennet is obtained by cold-water extraction of the enzymes present in flowers of the thistle, harvested during summer and allowed to dry in the dark for about 5 days.(flowers of wild thistle) are then added to achieve coagulationInitial stage of the cheese manufacturing process during which the proteins in warm milk are made to coagulate by the addition of an enzyme, the rennet. within 30-40 minutes.
The breaking up of the curd is the crucial phase in the production of pecorino, because the size of the curd particlesThe curd is cut in such a way as to obtain lumps of the size of a hazelnut for soft paste pecorino and of a kernel of corn for firmer pastes. after the break-up is one of the characteristics that distinguish the production of soft-paste cheese from that of the semi-hard variety.
The whey is then drained out in suitable moulds (called “fuscelle”): the curd is distributed through pipes to moulds placed over a vat whose purpose is to collect the drained whey. The synaeresis, that is the separation of the whey from the curd, is achieved through manual pressure.
After the pressing and turning over, the forms rest in the warm room and the following day they are dry-salted Salting is the last treatment carried out on the cheese before ripening; the salt acts at the same time as preservation agent, antiseptic (it controls microbial growth), and osmotic agent (the pecorino loses whey and absorbs salt). Salting makes it possible to modify the taste, by causing the cheese to acquire flavour; complete the drainage of the whey; develop the rind; affect a selection of the microorganisms populating the rind of the pecorino; slow the enzymatic reactions; and develop acidity.with the extra-pure salt from Volterra Caves.
