Grana Padano DOP

Grana Padano DOP

Produced throughout a vast area comprising the largest regions in northern Italy (excluding the provinces in Emilia dedicated to the production of Parmigiano Reggiano), Grana Padano, when produced with the appropriate care and ripened for at least two years, is a high quality product for use in cooking and as a table cheese. Guffanti selects and refines the production of a number of traditional cheese dairies in the typical areas of the Padano and, in particular, from the provinces of Piacenza and Cremona.

Organoleptic characteristics

Aspect and texture

hard, grainy, more or less intensely yellow paste depending on the length of ripening

Taste

harmonious, dry and intense with traces of grass when produced with the milk of open pasture grazing animals

Serving suggestions

full bodied, aged, red wines but also young, sparkling white wines. Fresh fruits (Kaiser pears), marrow chutney. Balsamic Modena vinegar, crusty bread.

Technical characteristics

Milk

skimmed, raw, cow’s milk

Production method

artisan and industrial

Paste

cooked, pressed

Salting

in brine

Ripening

not less than 9 months

Production period

throughout the year

Fats

32% F-Dm

Weight

24 – 40 kg

Dimensions

35-45 cm diameter, h. 18-25 cm

Producers

dairies belonging to the Grana Padano production and protection Consortium

Whole cheese code

n.d.

Cutted cheese code

n.d.

Source

Type of milk

Buffalo

Cow

Goat

Mixed milk

Sheep

The search for cheese takes us near Arona, in the hills of Vergante. At an altitude of about 400 metres, in the tranquillity of the hills overlooking Lake Maggiore and with glimpses of Lake Orta, a young cheesemaker produces this traditional and well-cared-for toma cheese in an open barn of Alpine brown cows. In the summer months (June, July, August and sometimes September) an alpine version is produced, with the animals moving freely to the slopes of Mottarone, where they can graze freely. Throughout the year, production continues in the dairy, always respecting the natural cycles of the cows. The characteristics of this cheese are determined by the particularity and specificity of the multi-grazed meadows where the Alpine Brown cow chooses the grass to graze every day.