Production chain
Our cheeses are the expression of a highly controlled process: from the milk to the maturing, to the consumer’s table, we guarantee maximum quality and constancy of the finished product.
From pastures to table: from the pastures to the table every wheel of our cheese is followed step by step by experts who are passionate about their work. Our cheeses tell two stories: one of the earth, grass, and flowers, and the other of man and his animals. Every day we collect fresh milk from small dairy farms chosen for their traditional working methods and their dedication to their animals. This precious raw material is taken to the cheese factory, where the cheese, using traditional methods, gradually takes shape. The journey continues into the cool maturing cellars where the cheese will ripen. Constant controls at every stage of production enable us to guarantee the identity and the quality of our products.
TERRITORY
The Pier Luigi Rosso Cheese Factory has its Head Office in Biella near the place where the Oropa Valley meets the Cervo Valley, in the centre of the Biellese alpine range. From the plain, our valleys resemble a majestic amphitheatre bordered to the west by the moraine bastion of the Serra, 25 kms long, and by the crests of Mombarone, and to the north and east by the imposing profiles of the alpine chain.
The middle and lower areas of the valleys, with hilly ridges rising above, form a vast green carpet where hundreds of small farms devoted to cattle - farming are to be found. In the westernmost area of the Biellese, in the upper Elvo Valley, home of the Rosso family, our ageing and ripening premises are located .
MILK
The fresh milk that we use is collected every day from 30 Biellese farms which have long bred a native breed of cow called the Pezzata Rossa of Oropa.
The morphological characteristics of the Pezzata Rossa of Oropa fully satisfy the economic and productive requirements of the summer pastures where the cattle are taken for 4-5 months; it is a strong animal with muscular limbs. Cows on their second calving can produce 10-14 litres a day of particularly rich milk. Biellese farmers are very fond of this breed which is in danger of extinction and over the years have made great efforts to preserve and improve it.
PRODUCTION
As soon as the milk has been collected it is checked and worked in a boiler using different traditional methods according to the type of cheese that is required. At the end of production the curds fill the shapes where the cheese is formed and where it is turned several times until the resting phase is completed in the stewing room. Then it is placed in the curing cellar, for a period of time in proportion to its size. When removed from the salt it is taken to the cool rooms to mature and this is where its unique characteristics will develop.
RIPENING
The fresh cheese is stamped with a lot number which guarantees its traceability.
Placed on a board of silver fir it is taken to cool damp cellars with a temperature of between 8 and 12 degrees. The wheels are massaged and turned one by one every week. The ageing period varies from 45 days to 180/300 days for our "special reserve" cheeses. Our products bear the company trademark "TR" which guarantees their authenticity and respect for traditional production processes. We also use the trademarks: "Toma Valle Elvo", produced by the Mountain Community for the dairy farmers of the same valley, "Toma Piemontese D.O.P." for cheeses produced in accordance with the norms of the protection consortium, "Toma Biellese" and "Maccagno Biellese".
INGREDIENTS
The best ingredients – Our principle is to produce all our artisan cheeses using high quality raw materials such as salt from Sicily and the traditional liquid rennet. For the flavoured products we use tasty juniper berries, sharp fennel and coriander seeds and spicy red chili pepper. For the fancy cheeses we have chosen products representing the excellence of Piedmont: Enrico Terzo’s artisan beers and Barbera d’Asti DOCG wine from the vineyards of Piero Prasso.