Espresso BellaVitano
- Producer
- Sartori
- Country
- United States
- Region
- Wisconsin
- Size
- 12-14
- Weight
- 20 lbs
- Website
- www.sartoricheese.com
- Milk
- Cow
- Treatment
- Pasteurised
- Classification
- Firm
- Rennet
- Microbial
- Rind
- Flavored
Established in 1939 by Paolo Sartori, Sartori Cheese Company is a fourth generation family owned business based in Plymouth, Wisconsin.
Primarily renowned for their production of hard and Italian style cheeses, the company sources milk from local, family owned farms within a close radius to their production facilities. The herd size at each farm averages 75 cows and many of the farms have worked with Sartori for multiple generations. The company also operates an incentive program that encourages each farm to produce the best quality milk possible.
For production of Sartori’s cheeses, the milk is heated, cultures and rennet are added and, once the milk has coagulated, the curd is cut, releasing the whey which is drained off.
The remaining curd is hand-salted and transferred into hoops and then pressed for several hours. After that,the newly formed wheels of cheese are placed in a warm “overnight” room to encourage the expulsion of more whey.
Wheels are then trimmed by hand and placed in a brine bath which encourages the formation of a rind. After the brine bath, the cheese is moved to a curing room for further maturation.
Each variety of cheese is matured for a different length of time. Every batch is tasted at regular intervals during this period and, when they are deemed ready, released for sale.
For the production of some of Sartori’s cheeses, carefully selected wheels are chosen to undergo a third stage of finishing.
This last stage involves the application by hand or soaking of a proprietary blend of one of a variety of coatings.
For production of Espresso BellaVitano, wheels of BellaVitano Gold are hand-coated with freshly-ground, roasted Italian espresso beans.
Tasting Notes
Flavors of the BellaVitano are of butterscotch, cream and toasted nuts and these combine with the slightly smoky, roasted flavors on the rind to produce a cheese with breat balance and a long, lingering finish.
Pairings
Espresso BellaVitano pairs well with sweet pastries, bagels, chocolate and dried apricots. Good wine pairings include Pinot Noir, Shiraz, Chardonnay and Sherry. Beers include Porters and Stouts, Belgian Trappist Ales and Barley Wines.
