Product Card to Fontina Pdo Bio

Oct. 30, 2012 - PRLog -- Brusson, 2012-07-30

Tipology: Full-fat cheese made with whole cow’s milk that is got from a single milking, with a natural acidity of fermentation.

Outer face: Cylindrical and concave form with a slightly or almost flat sides. Compact and thin crust, with a thickness about 2 mm.

Inner face: Elastic and soft paste, with a slightly yellowish color.

Size and weight: Cylindrical form with a diameter about 30-45 cm, height about 7-10 cm and weight about 8-18 kilograms. Variations depend on technical conditions of production.

Ingredients and processing: The whole cow’s milk is transformed only a few hours after milking, twice a day, at a temperature of 36°C, using veal rennet. Then the curd is broken, is heated slowly to 48°C and is placed in typical concave-sided cheese hoops on which a small casein plate is applied with the cheese’s progressive number. The cheeses are then placed under a press to assure the final removal of whey.

This pressing lasts around 12 hours during which time the cheeses are turned over a number of times. Before the final turning the small number plate is applied with the producer’s identification number (CTF), which together with the casein plate guarantees the clear tracing of the product.

Maturation: Most of the Fontina Dpo caves are dug out of the rock. Here the temperature ranges between 10°C and 12°C and the relative humidity level is over 85%, ideal conditions for the slow and gradual maturing of the cheese. The average period of maturation is at least 3 months during which the cheese is periodically brushed and dry-salted on the surface. In the first month the cheeses are turned daily, salted one day and dry-brushed the next; these operations help form the typical rind. Then these are carried out at longer intervals, and the carefully tended cheeses slowly mature, perfectly lined up on spruce shelves.

The nutritional characteristics of Fontina Pdo:

Average nutritional values per 100g of Fontina Pdo

-     Energy Value: 370 Kcal - 1532 KJ

-     Protein: 25,3 g

-     Carbohydrates: 2 g

-     Calcium: 760 mg

-     Phosphorous: 530 mg

-     Fats: 29 g

saturated fats 18,5 g

-     Vitamin A: 350 µg

How to eat Fontina Pdo Bio: the Fontina Pdo is an excellent table cheese

with a typical sweet taste. It’s used in the preparation of some traditional dishes

of Aosta Valley, like the Valpellinese soup.

How and where to preserve Fontina Pdo Bio: you can preserve the Fontina in either cellar or fridge. In the cellar the cheese must be put in a damp room, preferably on a wooden shelf, with a temperature not exceeding 12°C.

Every so often rub the cheese with a damp, salted cloth to remove the normal white mould on the rind. Should the cellar be too dry, wrap the cheese in a damp cloth.
In the fridge wrap the slice in cling film and place in the cool store of the fridge.