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Known as the Wild West of Italy, the culture and cuisine of Tuscany`s Maremma is defined largely by its resident butteri—the cowboys who work with the land and animals to produce a vast variety of artisanal products, including meat, leather, and cheese. While the area is most closely associated with the heritage breed long-horned cattle called Maremmana, as well as the flocks of sheep responsible for many delicious types of pecorino, a local family of farmers has made a name for itself raising another kind of livestock: water buffalo. 🐃
“My family has been working in agriculture for many generations,” says Guido Pallino, the current owner of @lamaremmana_caseificio. His ancestors lived as shepherds for centuries before transitioning to the dairy business in the 1950s and acquiring their first buffaloes in the 1980s. Today, they produce some of the best mozzarella di bufala in the world, along with an array of other buffalo milk products, from burrata and caciocavallo to ricotta and robiola.
In a country famous for its deep-rooted traditions—especially when it comes to food—La Maremmana represents a rare and respectful model of preserving the past while exploring creative opportunities for the future. Their long-lasting relationship with the butteri who manage their animals has been key to their success. One of these cowboys, Mario Stefanelli, has been working with the dairy farm for more than 15 years. For the past four years, his daughter, Marcella, has worked alongside him on horseback.
It is unusual to see a buttera—a cowgirl—in Maremma, and, in general, there are not many young Tuscans carrying on the custom today. Tap the link in bio to discover why Marcella`s keeping it going. 🐎
✍️: @elenavaleriote
📸: Giada Mariani
Brb, we`ve gone fishing. 🎣
Find our list of tinned fish x cheese pairings expertly curated by @american_cheese_society Certified Cheese Professional® Michelle Vieira (@columbuscurdnerd) at the link in bio. 🐟️🧀
✍️: @malscy
📸: @ninagallant_
👗: @madstrap
There’s a cheese made high in the mountains, where cows graze on lush vegetation that gives its firm, crumbly paste a golden hue. Large wheels are made by hand before they’re brought down to the village for months of aging. Crack one open for a kaleidoscope of assertive aromas: lactic, mineral, vegetal, fruity.
The cheese is Cotija, made by a dwindling number of families in the Sierra Jalmich, a mountain range that straddles the borders of the Mexican states of Jalisco and Michoacán. Mountain Cotija is not the simple, salty white cheese available in the United States, nor is it like the versions produced outside of this remote region that are sold under the same name throughout Mexico.
“When you open a wheel, it’s incredibly aromatic. You will sense pineapple, sometimes green apple, banana skin,” says @jessfelo, founder of cheese education platform and consultancy @mexicanmongers.
Tap the link in bio to learn more about this endangered Cotija.
✍️: @arockjonestown
We`re continuing our celebration of National Goat Cheese Month with @casearia_arnoldi_valtaleggio`s Capriolina, our centerfold cheese from Spring 2024`s issue. 💚
This creamy, funky pasteurized goat’s milk cheese is brimming with personality. Swipe for a closer look and tap the link in bio for summery pairing suggestions. 🍷🍯
✍️: @malscy
📸: @ninagallant_
👗: @madstrap
Drink these summer suds & cheese pairings all August long—link in bio for the full expert-recommended guide. 🍻🧀
✍️: Cathryn Haight
Meet @chefkarenakunowicz and swipe for her masterpiece: impossibly delicate and delightfully decadent ricotta gnocchi with lemon butter and caviar. 🤤
“This dish is my version of caviar service reimagined,” she says.
Link in bio for a deep dive into Akunowicz`s award-winning Boston restaurants, @foxandknife and @bar.volpe, and her exquisite use of Italian cheese at each location. 🧀
✍️: @madstrap
📸: @ninagallant_
Celebrate National Goat Cheese Month by entering @laclarecreamery`s sweepstakes at our link in bio. You`ll receive 52 logs of delicious Wisconsin goat cheese if you win! 🤤🐐🧀
We asked cheese shop owners across the United States about summer`s hottest cheese trends. Of course, they delivered. 🔥
Swipe for quotes + tap the link in bio for the full interview. 🧀
Our version of the "essentials" 🧀🧀🧀
Credit: @realcalifmilk
There’s no denying that many people have a strong aversion to blue cheese. Our culture is obsessed with expiration dates and visible mold usually means toss it out, so it makes sense that streaks of blue and green in your food might raise an eyebrow—or turn a stomach.
"While some people may truly not like blue cheese, I’ve found that, more often than not, they just haven’t met the right one yet," says culture`s @josiekrogh. "Over time, I made it a personal mission to open minds and palates to the world of blue cheese."
Find the perfect gateway blue cheese to serve friends and family at the link in bio. 🩵🧀
@sweetgrassdairy`s Green Hill is a camembert-style cheese made from double cream cow`s milk. The dairy`s co-owner, Jessica Little, says the flagship cheese is a "good representation of our rich, buttery, grassy, and mushroomy milk." 🥛
Tap the link in bio for five brie-lliant ideas on how to cook with Green Hill (and take your summer dinner party game to the next level). 🍳
📸 & ✍️: Brandon Blumenfeld (@collateral_cabbage)
Whether you need a fresh playlist to get you through summer cheesemaking days or some jams for your next picnic, look no further than our latest column by Leslie Cooperband (@lrcoop60), the co-founder and former owner of @prairiefruitsfarm.
Link in bio to read and listen. 🎶
The best cheese in America is…Canadian (again)! 
Alfred Le Fermier from @Fromagerie_La_Station took Best of Show at the 2025 @american_cheese_society Judging & Competition—marking the second year in a row the Québec creamery has won top honors. 🧀
This Alpine-style raw cow`s milk cheese has a yellow-orange hue on the rind and carries notes of flowers and hazelnuts.
Second place went to @JasperHillFarm cider-washed Withersbrook Blue, and third to Grand Trunk by Ontario’s @StonetownCheese.
Go to our link in bio to see the full list of winners 🧀 🎉
Happy National Wine & Cheese Day! 🍷🧀
Toast the holiday with some of our favorite pairings and guides. Link in bio!
In honor of Leo season, @astrolocheese is shining a spotlight on one rich, smoky, melty pairing. After all, the bold and gregarious character of Leo demands drama ... and fondue, of course. 🫕
Have a cheese-loving Leo in your life? Tag them below! 🦁🧀
"If you’ve seen @everythingeverywheremovie, then you have some idea of how my small business owner’s brain has been functioning," says @wordsbykimi, owner of @lifelovecheese in Wakefield, Massachusetts. "Even if you haven’t seen it, the best way I can describe the last several months is running really fast, but getting nowhere while a tidal wave is constantly threatening to overwhelm me."
Read Ceridon`s column about what it`s like to run a cheese shop at the link in bio. 🧀
Veronique Kherian, also known as "@misscheesemonger Sings," is a mezzo-soprano who performs cheese-pairing recitals in the Bay Area.
After attending law school, Kherian worked as a cheesemonger, photographer, and artisan cheese blogger. Her recitals feature a variety of music genres from cabaret to classical opera, paired with curated cheeses from @cheeseplus in San Francisco.
We spoke with Kherian about the inspiration behind her unique concept and why she combined her passion for music with her love of cheese. Tap the link in bio for your first dose of weekend reading. 🎼🧀
✍️: @cookcookclaire
"My plan was to write about my first time judging at the @american_cheese_society’s Judging & Competition in Minneapolis," says Agela Abdullah (@cheesewench), President of the @cheeseculturecoalition, in her latest Cheese for the Culture column.
"I wanted to tell you all about how a friend sent me Burrino Pepato from @murrayscheese: Scamorza from @maplebrookfarm is wrapped around a cultured butter center from @ploughgate, then coated in peppercorns and aged in Murray’s award-winning caves," she continues. "I tried, I really did. I just couldn’t do it this time. I’m exhausted."
Tap the link in bio for Abdullah`s reflections on the weary blues and Black Fatigue.
🎨: @ireecespieces
Open call for pitches!
Culture is on the hunt for fresh stories for 2026. If you`ve got a great idea for a cheese-related story we want to hear about it!
Pitches usually come from writers, but they also are sent by people who are on the producing/sales end of things: cheesemakers, consultants, retail sales managers, publicists. It doesn’t really matter who sends in a pitch, so don’t be shy; if it’s a great idea, we’ll be sure to follow up on it.
Email pitches to mallory@culturecheesemag.com before August 4 for editorial consideration!
All too often, in-season bell peppers are typecast into a handful of familiar roles: crudités, stir-fries, sofrito, shakshuka.
It’s true, they excel in those dishes, but they’re capable of so much more.
This roasted red pepper pasta alla vodka begins by charring bell peppers until totally blackened. The papery skins slip off easily, leaving behind a smokiness that’s supported by pancetta, smoked paprika, and chile flakes.
Does this sound delicious to you? Tap the link in bio for the recipe. 🍳
✍️ & 📸: @raerobey