A Judge’s Taste of Italy: The Wonderful World of Italian Cheese
Ask me to choose my favourite cheese, and you may get a different answer depending on the day. Sometimes I want something fresh and delicate like an amazing Burrata, or just a Mozzarella di Bufala. Other times, a crumbly aged Pecorino or a generous spoonful of creamy Gorgonzola with a slice of mature pear is exactly what I have in mind.
Recently, in 2026, I had the honour of being a judge at the Italian Cheese Awards in Ancona. Together with 19 other judges, I tasted and evaluated 34 cheeses across 10 categories, from soft cheeses to aged and blue cheeses, produced throughout the Italian Peninsula.
It was a wonderful opportunity to explore the diversity of Italian cheesemaking...and a reminder of why choosing just one favourite is so difficult!
Working with cheese at Formaggioteca Terroir, I’m constantly reminded of how much there is to discover. Even after years of tasting, learning with the organisation of Italian Cheese Tasters (ONAF), and simply visiting farms (my absolute favorite thing), and sharing cheeses with our guests, there is always another producer, another local tradition or another unexpected flavour to explore.
Behind every wheel is a combination of milk, landscape, technique and human imagination.
Change just one of those things, and you can end up with something completely different.
It all begins with milk
Much of Italy’s cheese production starts with four different milks: cow, sheep, goat and water buffalo. Each brings its own character, and cheesemakers can use them individually or combine them.
But the milk is only the beginning.
Think about the difference between fresh mozzarella and a firm, aged cheese. Or between a delicate goat’s cheese and a blue cheese with a powerful aroma. They belong to the same broad family of foods, yet eating them can feel like an entirely different experience.
The cheesemaker makes decisions at every stage: how to coagulate the milk, how finely to cut the curd, how much whey to drain, whether to heat or press it, and how to mature the finished cheese.
Larger pieces of curd generally retain more moisture. Smaller pieces allow more whey to escape. Those early decisions help set the direction, while the work that follows develops the cheese’s texture and flavour.
Then there is time. A cheese eaten after a few days tells a different story from one matured for several months.
And what about lactose?
The transformation from milk to cheese also brings some good news for cheese lovers with lactose intolerance.
Much of the milk’s lactose drains away with the whey, while cheesemaking bacteria break down what remains. Many mature cheeses therefore contain very little lactose, and some are naturally lactose-free. Parmigiano Reggiano, for example, becomes naturally lactose-free within the first 48 hours of production - long before its extended ageing begins.
So lactose intolerance doesn’t necessarily mean saying goodbye to a delicious cheese board. There isn’t a universal number of days after which every cheese becomes lactose-free: the production method matters, too. Checking the producer’s information or lactose-free labelling, and knowing your own tolerance, is more useful than relying on age alone.
One important distinction: lactose intolerance concerns the sugar in milk. A milk-protein allergy is a different condition, and a lactose-free dairy cheese still contains milk proteins.
The surprising question: is cheese vegetarian?
This is another detail that can catch people by surprise.
Cheese is made from milk, so it is easy to assume that it is automatically suitable for vegetarians. But most cheeses are made using animal rennet, traditionally obtained from the stomachs of young ruminants such as calves, lambs or kids.
Rennet contains enzymes that help milk coagulate, transforming it into curd.
There are alternatives, including plant-based and microbial coagulants. Some cheeses also rely mainly on acidity to form their curd.
Plant coagulants have a long history. Thistle flowers and fig latex are traditional examples of materials used to coagulate milk. It is fascinating to think of cheesemakers discovering how something growing nearby could help transform such a perishable ingredient.
For anyone who follows a vegetarian diet, the useful question is therefore: “What kind of rennet was used?”
Can cheese express terroir?
We talk about terroir constantly in wine. With cheese, the idea is just as interesting.
The landscape influences what animals eat. Their breed, their feed and the season can all affect the milk. The cheesemaker then works with that milk, using knowledge and methods that may have developed locally over generations.
Italy offers an extraordinary range of settings for this to happen.
There are Alpine pastures, inland valleys, rolling hills and Mediterranean landscapes. A cheese made in a mountain dairy begins in a very different environment from one produced in the sheep-farming countryside of central Italy.
The country’s cultural diversity adds another layer. Long before Italian unification in 1861, communities were developing their own foods, habits and ways of preserving milk.
Those local identities remain strong. You see them in pasta shapes, bread, cured meats, and, of course, cheese.
Even within the same region, neighbouring producers may make cheeses with distinct personalities. That is exactly what makes tasting them so rewarding.
Protected names and room for imagination
Some Italian cheeses carry a DOP designation, known in English as PDO: Protected Designation of Origin. These names come with rules governing their origin and production.
Gorgonzola, for example, is a protected cheese made from cow’s milk. A producer can make a wonderful blue cheese from sheep’s milk, but cannot simply call it Gorgonzola.
Outside those protected names, there is plenty of room for creativity.
Cheesemakers can experiment with milk combinations, maturation and different techniques. Italy’s cheese culture includes both deeply rooted traditions and producers curious enough to try something new.
The awards in Ancona brought that variety together in one place. For me, being part of the judging panel was also an opportunity to appreciate the work behind each cheese: the care, patience and countless decisions that eventually become something we can taste.
And after the judging came the celebration, with the winning producers receiving their “cheese Oscars” during a suitably cheesy ceremony!
A little curiosity goes a long way
You don’t need to memorise cheese names or recognise every rind to enjoy a good tasting.
Start by asking a few questions. What milk is it made from? Where does it come from? How long has it matured? What does the producer do that makes it distinctive?
Then taste.
Notice the texture, the aroma and how the flavour changes as you eat. Try something familiar beside something new. Leave a little room for surprises.
That is what we love sharing at Formaggioteca Terroir in Florence: delicious cheeses, the stories behind them, and the pleasure of discovering a flavour you didn’t know you would love.
And if you ask me for my favourite, I’ll happily tell you.
Just don’t expect the same answer next time.
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