This unique cheese from the Ossola Valley, produced in ultra-limited quantities, is back on our shelves and in our e-shop after a year's wait!
Bettelmatt cheese is a jewel of the Alpine dairy tradition, produced by only eight cheese dairies in Piedmont, and only during the summer months when the herds graze high in the mountains. Local shepherds have been producing this unique cheese since the 13th century, and the method of production has remained unchanged to this day. Unlike other cheeses, the entire production process is still carried out by hand in mountain huts, without the use of machines, pasteurization, or preservatives.
One of these cheesemakers is Gabriele Scilligo, whose Bettelmatt cheese can be found on our shelves. He uses only unpasteurized whole milk from his own 60 cows of the local Bruna Alpina breed, which he takes to high-altitude pastures between the Valle Antigorio and Val Formazza valleys at an altitude of around 2,200 meters at the beginning of summer to graze on a unique mixture of grasses and aromatic herbs. The food they graze on strongly influences the quality and taste of the milk, which is why milk from this area tastes significantly different from milk from cows grazing on other alpine meadows.
The milk is processed twice a day, after morning and evening milking, directly in the mountains at the Alpe Regina mountain hut near the Swiss border. Immediately after milking, rennet is added to the milk and the resulting cheese mass is broken up and gently heated in copper vats. It is then transferred and manually pressed into molds, where the cheese takes its final shape. This is followed by two months of aging in stone cellars, where the aroma of mountain meadows is further refined and enhanced. Finally, each Bettelmatt mold is branded with a logo that guarantees its authenticity.
Bettelmatt hits the market in the fall, and due to its very limited production, most of the molds are consumed during the winter. And then comes another long wait until nature awakens from its winter slumber, the snow melts, and the herders can once again drive their cows up into the mountains to graze and produce their exceptional milk, born in complete silence, tranquility, and peace.