Cheese Slices featuring Italy

Italy is one of the most diverse cheese-producing countries in the world, with deeply embedded regional traditions. We reveal how artisanal producers continue to safeguard centuries-old methods behind cheeses like Parmigiano Reggiano and Pecorino while maintaining strong local identities.

Episodes

Italy & France – Corsica and Sardinia Traditional Cheeses

Despite being close neighbours, these two large islands in the Mediterranean have distinctly different cheese traditions. While sampling Corsica’s renowned Brocciu, a soft Ewe’s milk cheese, Will is introduced to a traditional version ripened with maggots

Italy – Rare Mountain Cheeses of the North East

Will travels to the foothills of the Alps to meet the oldest cheese maker in Italy. He is shown how Asiago d’allevo was once made over a wooden fire.

Italy – Traditional Cheeses from the Hills & Alps of Piedmont

Will investigates the many different types of Toma cheese made in the Alps before travelling to the Langhe Hills and meeting the producers of two endangered cheeses protected by the Slow Food movement.

Italy – Traditional Cheeses of Sicily

Will looks at the many flavours of Sicilian Pecorino, and visits one of the last farmhouse dairies making a saffron-flavoured cheese from ewe’s milk, before finding himself in a Dickensian cheese-maturing room that is several centuries behind the times

Italy – Pecorino Toscano

Will visits the Piedmont town of Bra, where the Slow Food movement holds a specialist cheese festival every second year.

Italy – Mozzarella and the Cheeses of Campania

Will journeys to Italy’s picturesque Campania region to look at stretched curd cheeses and finds it hard to resist the lingering flavour and sensual texture of buffalo cheese made from raw milk.

Italy – Parmigiano Reggiano & Grana Padano

In this episode Will meets the Biemme family, who have been making Parmigiano Reggiano for four generations.

France – Traditional AOC Goat’s Cheese of Poitou

Will travels to the Poitou region of southwest France, where most of the country’s AOC goat’s cheeses are made.

Italy – Gorgonzola & Cave-Ripened Taleggio

Travelling to Lombardy, Will explores two of the country’s best-known soft cheeses, Gorgonzola and Taleggio.

Abruzzo, Italy – Cheeses of the Great Track: Burrata, Pasta Filata, Pecorino

Will follows the ancient shepherds trail from the mountains of Abruzzo to the plains of Puglia.