The history of Quartirolo cheese is strictly related to the ancient agriculture cycles of the territory between the Po Valley and the pre-alpine valleys between Bergamo and Lecco: it’s a story of love and dedication. Its origins date back to the X Century A.D., when the local shepherds used to take the cattle to the mountains on summer till the early autumn days, so that the cows could always have fresh grass to eat. When they came back to the plain, the cows found a prize: the “quartirola” grass, which is the fourth one, grew after the third cut of the hay. It was a late-season grass, low and thick, full of all the summer perfumes: this gave the cows’ milk a very aromatic scent.
The cheese made with this milk was named Quartirolo, as a tribute to the last blades of fresh grass before the coming of winter.
Quartirolo Lombardo is an early-riser: you have to collect the milk as soon as it’s milked across the different farms of the cheese production area. After it gets to the cheese factory, the milk starts his journey to become the yummy Quartirolo. The curd gets broken very carefully the first time, then it rests for 5/6 minutes and it gets broken again, until the cheese-makers obtain some clumps just as big as a hazelnut. Afterwards, they put the curd in some moulds, so that it can turn into Quartirolo. After losing all the whey, the cheese gets “stewed”, which means they get stored in rooms with controlled temperature and humidity, over no more than 24 hours. After this phase, they are taken to a storage room to be salted. Here the ripening process begins, creating to different products: a fresh cheese and a cheese that ripened over at least 30 days, with a rosy rind that differentiates it from its “younger brother”. How does Quartirolo look like? It is a white cheese, whose texture is sometimes lumpy and whose taste is slightly bitter and savoury when it’s fresh, sweet when it’s ripened. As you smell it, you will yogurt or cooked milk and mushrooms, depending on its maturation period (more or less than 30 days).
The history of Quartirolo cheese is strictly related to the ancient agriculture cycles of the territory between the Po Valley and the pre-alpine valleys between Bergamo and Lecco: it’s a story of love and dedication. Its origins date back to the X Century A.D., when the local shepherds used to take the cattle to the mountains on summer till the early autumn days, so that the cows could always have fresh grass to eat. When they came back to the plain, the cows found a prize: the “quartirola” grass, which is the fourth one, grew after the third cut of the hay. It was a late-season grass, low and thick, full of all the summer perfumes: this gave the cows’ milk a very aromatic scent.
The cheese made with this milk was named Quartirolo, as a tribute to the last blades of fresh grass before the coming of winter.
Quartirolo Lombardo is an early-riser: you have to collect the milk as soon as it’s milked across the different farms of the cheese production area. After it gets to the cheese factory, the milk starts his journey to become the yummy Quartirolo. The curd gets broken very carefully the first time, then it rests for 5/6 minutes and it gets broken again, until the cheese-makers obtain some clumps just as big as a hazelnut. Afterwards, they put the curd in some moulds, so that it can turn into Quartirolo. After losing all the whey, the cheese gets “stewed”, which means they get stored in rooms with controlled temperature and humidity, over no more than 24 hours. After this phase, they are taken to a storage room to be salted. Here the ripening process begins, creating to different products: a fresh cheese and a cheese that ripened over at least 30 days, with a rosy rind that differentiates it from its “younger brother”. How does Quartirolo look like? It is a white cheese, whose texture is sometimes lumpy and whose taste is slightly bitter and savoury when it’s fresh, sweet when it’s ripened. As you smell it, you will yogurt or cooked milk and mushrooms, depending on its maturation period (more or less than 30 days).
Il Quartirolo Lombardo D.O.P. si produce tutto l’anno in tutta la provincia di Bergamo.
Terre del Colleoni red D.O.C. Schiava for fresh quartirolo
Valcalepio red D.O.C. for ripened quartirolo
