Salva

This cheese used to be made in May with the excess milk produced at that time of year. Salva (literally, “it saves” in Italian) was an appropriate name for a cheese that represented an economic lifeline for many dairies. The cheesemaking technique is the same as for quartirolo but the milk is processed at a higher level of acidity and the curd is milled into very small pieces. Pasteurised part-skimmed milk is curdled at 36°C with liquid calf’s rennet for about 30 minutes. The curd is milled in two stages with an interval of 10-15 minutes. After being left to stand for a short while, it is taken out and placed in moulds. The rounds are then ripened at 25-30°C for 18-24 hours. Next, they are left to mature in cool rooms for a month. At this point, the cheeses are ready for eating or further maturing. Salva has a mild flavour when young, acquiring aromatic, forest-floor notes as it matures. It features a fairly thick outer rind, hazel shading into dark brown in colour with age, and a straw-white body with tiny, almost imperceptible eyes, which may present slight flaking. The round is generally 10-18 cm high and weighs between 3 and 4 kg.Its area of origin is the Franciacorta district in the province of Brescia and a few municipalities around Bergamo and Cremona, Lombardy.