The local cheeses of Veneto with the local wines that suit them, and why they work.
The cheeses of Veneto with the wines made beside them. Pairings marked as a local tradition are the ones a regional source names; the rest are our own picks, and say so.
Qualigeo says Casatella goes well with white and sparkling wines such as Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco. The cheese is soft, sweet and milky, and a dry Valdobbiadene's acidity and fine bubbles cut the creaminess between bites.
Bottles to try:
Qualigeo lists Prosecco DOP among the wines of the Montasio zone that it is paired with. Young Montasio is milky and soft; a dry Prosecco's acidity and bubbles lift that richness and leave the mouth clean.
Bottles to try:
A dry, steel-raised Soave Classico echoes the sweet, milky flavour of fresh Asiago without covering it, and its high acidity cuts through the soft, buttery paste.
Bottles to try:
Mezzano and Vecchio have a firmer, more savoury paste that wants a red with some structure. A Ripasso, refermented on dried Amarone skins, gives medium tannin and high acidity, enough to match the cheese without drowning it.
Bottles to try:
Qualigeo lists Piave Raboso among the wines Montasio is paired with. Raboso is tannic and high in acidity; an aged Montasio, savoury and aromatic per Qualigeo, brings fat and salt that soften the grip.
Bottles to try:
D'Allevo turns slightly piquant with age, per Qualigeo. A Valpolicella Ripasso, refermented on dried Amarone skins, brings medium tannin and a little more weight than Bardolino, enough to meet that savoury edge.
Bottles to try:
An aged Piave Vecchio or Riserva is savoury, intense and crumbly, never spicy, per Qualigeo and the consortium. Amarone, dry but rich from dried grapes, with full body and firm tannin, stands up to that concentration.
Bottles to try:
Schiz is browned in butter, finished with cream and eaten with polenta. A dry Valdobbiadene brings acidity and fine bubbles that cut the butter and cream and leave the plain milk flavour clear.
Bottles to try:
Fresh Asiago Pressato is sweet and slightly tangy, with a soft, buttery paste. An Extra Dry Prosecco carries a touch of sweetness that meets the milky flavour, while its acidity and bubbles clear the butter from the palate.
Bottles to try:
Qualigeo suggests slightly fruity red wines with Monte Veronese. A Bardolino Classico, light in body and low in tannin with fresh acidity, suits the young Latte Intero, whose flavour is delicate, without covering it.
Bottles to try:
Piccante, made with lamb or kid rennet and aged at least 90 days, is sharper than the Dolce type. A sweet Recioto di Soave, with apricot and honey over bright acidity, sets sweet against salty and sharp.
Bottles to try:
For a Grana Padano aged 20 months or more, the fine, granular, savoury paste meets Torcolato's apricot jam, honey and dried fig, and the passito's lively acidity stops the sweetness from cloying.
Bottles to try:
Slow Food says to eat Morlacco, a tender and very salty cheese, with light white wines. A light, dry white raised in steel without oak refreshes the palate between salty bites.
Bottles to try:
Monte Veronese is a semi-cooked cow's-milk cheese from the Verona mountains, delicate when young and slightly piquant with age. A Soave Superiore, a medium-bodied Garganega-based white with high acidity, has the weight for the paste and cuts its fat.
Bottles to try:
A dry, light rosé with strawberry fruit and crisp acidity works as an aperitif beside cubes of fresh Asiago: the wine refreshes and the cheese's sweet, slightly tangy milkiness stays in front.
Bottles to try:
Qualigeo calls fresh Piave milky and sweet. A dry, unoaked Soave Classico with high acidity contrasts with that mildness and keeps the pairing from feeling heavy.
Bottles to try:
Asiago d'Allevo Mezzano is compact with sweet notes, turning savoury and grainy as it ages. Garganega fermented or aged in oak barriques has a rounder texture that matches the firm paste, and its high acidity keeps the pairing fresh.
Bottles to try:
Fresh Asiago Pressato is sweet and slightly tangy, with a soft, buttery paste. A dry Lugana from Turbiana, with high acidity and some breadth, cuts through the butter and lets the milky sweetness of the cheese show.
Bottles to try:
Piave Mezzano, aged two to six months, is turning savoury and intense but never spicy, with an aroma of alpine herbs. A Cartizze, off-dry with fine bubbles, sets its touch of sugar against the cheese's salt and leaves the palate clean.
Bottles to try:
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Qualigeo describes two types: Fresco (Pressato), made with whole milk and ripened at least 20 days, and Stagionato (d'Allevo), made with partly skimmed milk and aged at least 90 days.
Qualigeo gives the production zone as the province of Vicenza, two bordering areas of Padova and Treviso, and the autonomous province of Trento.
Yes. Qualigeo describes the Fresco type with marked, irregular eyes in a white or slightly straw paste.
Asiago became an Italian denominazione di origine, with a fixed production zone, by presidential decree on 21 December 1978, and an EU DOP in 1996. From 1955 the name had been reserved only as a typical cheese, defined by method but not by place.
Qualigeo gives the label terms: Mezzano is four to ten months, Vecchio ten to fifteen months and Stravecchio over fifteen months of ageing.
A mention allowed when the cheese is made in the mountain area from milk of mountain farms (above 600 m, per Qualigeo). The minimum ageing for the aged type stays at 90 days.
Qualigeo says the aged type is the older one; the fresh Pressato began to be made in the 1920s.
Asiago became an Italian denominazione di origine, with a fixed production zone, by presidential decree on 21 December 1978, and an EU DOP in 1996. From 1955 the name had been reserved only as a typical cheese, defined by method but not by place.
