Cheese tastings, cave tours, markets and cheese routes in Tuscany.
A guide to cheese experiences in Tuscany.
Pienza's cheese fair, started in 1974 on the initiative of the Pro Loco's first president: pecorino stalls and local food, demonstrations and children's activities, and the Cacio al Fuso game, in which the town's six contrade roll pecorino wheels toward a spindle in Piazza Pio II.
Annual programme of the Pecorino Toscano DOP consortium: free guided visits to a few member dairies, among them Busti, Il Fiorino and Caseificio Sociale Manciano, showing how the cheese is made. Each dairy sets its own visit dates and takes bookings by its own contact.
Guided visit of the Fiorino dairy and its natural ageing grotto, then a tasting of four pecorini with fresh ricotta, honey and preserves, bread and a glass of sparkling wine. The 4-hour Sulle Vie della Transumanza route (60 EUR) adds a tour of medieval Roccalbegna and six pecorini. By reservation only.
Guided routes through the Busti dairy, each ending with a tasting. Four formats: Nonna Emma (4 cheeses), La Pec (3 cheeses with La Pec ricotta), Pecorino Toscano DOP (4 cheeses and Tuscan charcuterie) and Grotte (5 cheeses and a hot first course, plus the ageing cave visit). Minimum 2 participants.
Tasting of four wines with a board of four cheeses, or a guided tour of the winery and dairy (the dairy is seen from outside) followed by the tasting. Tastings and visits run Monday to Saturday by reservation, for up to 20 people; tours leave at 11:00 and 16:00, the afternoon one in summer only for the larger board.
Three-hour visit to a working sheep dairy, seeing cheese processing and tasting Pienza pecorino at different stages of ageing. Booked through the Strada del Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, which lists departures at 10:30 or 16:00; Visit Tuscany lists the operator as Valdichiana Living and a 13:00 slot. Transport on request.
The farm lists a cheese-making demonstration and a tasting tour among its activities, and each class includes a guided tour of the farm and dairy. Prices for the cooking classes are given on request.
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Fresco must age at least 20 days and stagionato at least 4 months, according to the Qualigeo product sheet.
Mostly, but the DOP area also covers bordering communes in the Viterbo province of Lazio and the Perugia and Terni provinces of Umbria.
Qualigeo describes the taste as sweet, never salty or spicy, and credits a salting much shorter than other pecorini: on average about 16 hours for a fresco and about 24 hours for a stagionato.
Italy recognised Pecorino Toscano as a denominazione di origine by presidential decree on 17 May 1986, and the EU registered it as a DOP in 1996.
Fresco from 7 to 44 days, semistagionato from 45 days to 6 months, stagionato from 6 to 12 months and da asserbo over 12 months.
0.6 to 2 kg for the fresco, semistagionato and stagionato, and up to 7 kg for the da asserbo.
Raw whole sheep's milk from Sardinian-breed sheep, with vegetable rennet.
Italian sources link the name to March (marzo), when spring milk and production traditionally began. Production at Chianti dairies is said to run from November to June.