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Best Calabrian Hard Cheese Types
Even though it looks a lot like Pecorino Toscano, apart from being produced in two different Italian regions, these two aged semi-firm sheep milk cheeses both have their own specific flavor profile. Every Pecorino has that famous sweet and salty flavor, but unlike the similarly aged Tuscan version, the earthy flavored Crotonese is known to have an aroma with more sheepiness to it, and a pronounced citrus note.
This Calabrian cheese is named after the city and province of Crotone, where it is being produced mainly between the months of January and June when sheep's milk is of the best quality and most abundant. Pecorino Crotonese is aged in wicker baskets which leave quite distinctive hatch marks on its rind.
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Butirro is an Italian kneaded-curd cheese originating from the Calabria region. Its outer layer consists of solid cheese made from Podolica cow’s milk, while butter is enclosed on the inside, maintaining its flavor and aroma until it gets consumed.
The texture of the cheese is elastic, stringy, and dense, while the aromas are flowery, with hints of lilies and ripe fruits. Originally, this cheese was produced as a way to preserve butter, especially during hot summer months.
Caprino della Limina is a traditional goat's milk cheese from Calabria, Italy, particularly produced in the mountain communities of Limina. It is made by adding kid rennet to goat’s milk, allowing it to set, then pressing the curd into rush baskets to drain excess whey.
The cheese is salted, molded, and aged in a cellar for up to 12 months, with its rind brushed in olive oil. The rind turns straw-yellow, and the interior, initially soft and white, hardens as it ages. It has a creamy, mildly tangy flavor, enjoyed young or aged.
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