The production process of Grignard-Padano cheese

Gorina Padano is a hard semi-skimmed cheese produced by the natural acid fermentation of the curd, with a long cooking and ripening time. The basis of production is fresh milk. The cows are milked twice daily and their basic diet consists of fresh or stored grass. The fresh milk is set aside to partially defatten it, resulting in curdling. This product is guaranteed to be produced all year round.

1. Milk to cheese wheel.

According to the rules governing production specifications, Gorena Padano cheese must be made from fresh milk. The cows are milked only twice a day, and production can only take place in a cheese processing plant accredited by a certifying body (as CSQA).

Milk that has been partially skimmed by natural pasteurization is placed in a traditional double-bottomed copper cauldron, which should be large enough to hold the two largest wheels of cheese. Natural cream will be added to the milk.

The yeast consists of a natural lactic acid bacteria that evolved in the milk slurry produced during the previous cheese making process. Milk that has been inoculated with this yeast is heated to 31°C-33°C and the lining of the calf's stomach is added to help coagulate. The curd is then broken up, heated to between 53°C and 56°C degrees and stirred. After heating, the particles of curd will sink to the bottom of the cauldron and bind together, retaining them in the milk slurry for 30-70 minutes, and the cooking temperature should not be higher than the temperature at the end of the heating process.

2. Salting.

Two days after the cheese has been made, it is formed into cylindrical shapes in molds and then immersed in a solution of salt and water for salting.　　The duration of this process varies, generally from 16 to 25 days, depending mainly on the type of salt solution, the size of the cheese wheel and the level of salting required.

3. Ripening.

Once removed from the brine, the wheels are transported to a "greenhouse" or heated area where they are allowed to dry out for a few hours; finally, they are transferred to ripening warehouses for stacking.

The ripening process should be carried out in well insulated conditions, with modern systems for controlling the required temperature, humidity and ventilation.

During the long ripening process, Gorena-Padano cheese undergoes a series of physical, chemical and microbiological changes, which will be reflected mainly by sensory characteristics. During this time, the cheese wheel should be inspected, cleaned and turned every fifteen days or so. These once entirely manual tasks have been accomplished by brush removers and automatic turning equipment.

4. Opening.

When appropriate, the Gorena-Padano cheese wheel should be inspected using traditional inspection tools (a small hammer, a needle, a probe). If a more definitive inspection is required, the cheese wheel should be cut.

The small hammer, a small steel instrument with a well-balanced body weight, is an indispensable tool for cutting holes in cheese wheels. This procedure may be performed only by a few specialized testers to look for substandard cracks and voids in the cheese or to show cracks or defects caused by abnormal fermentation.　　Long screw pins are inserted into the cheese wheel in order to check the aroma and flavor of the cheese.

These simple and old-fashioned methods of inspection do not in any way compromise the product itself.

If the professional tester wishes to be completely assured of the quality of the cheese, a sample (plug) of a piece of cheese about 1 cm in diameter and 7-8 cm long can be selected with the help of a small probe. The core sample examination will be used to show the color, aroma and elasticity of the cheese, or defects such as irregular holes or cracks.

5. Marking.

After selection after opening and detailed inspection by experts from the Coalition for the Preservation of Gorena Padano Cheese, using a probe and under the supervision of CSQA officials, the Gorena Padano cheese will be branded with a logo to guarantee its "wholesome, authentic and commercially available" quality.

Under the supervision of the staff of the Coalition for the Protection of the Grana Padano Cheese and of the certification body, the staff of the Coalition's cheese-processing plants will only brand wheels of cheese that meet the relevant standards with the "Grana Padano" logo. Without this mark, the cheese cannot be named or marketed as Grana Padano.

Additionally, the logo must be printed on all packages of grated products or small blocks to ensure that consumers are legally purchasing cheeses that carry the Grana Padano (PDO) name.

Cheese wheels that are deemed not to meet the necessary quality and commercial requirements in the final opening test, but that contain the Grana Padano designation of origin, will be "hidden", i.e., covered by markings concealing the diamond shape and four-leaf clover, or else they will be deemed not to be actually present. Otherwise, the wheels will be recognized as "Grana Padano" cheeses that are not actually in compliance with the standard.

(Source of gallery of Grignard-Padano cheese production process)