We just cracked a wheel of Monte Veronese DOP di Malga, a beautiful aged Italian cow’s milk cheese that is about 2½ years old now. Quite delicious. Meaty, pineappley, salty and piquant…
Monte Veronese di Malga is something special. The term “Malga” is the equivalent of “Alpage” and is given only to cheeses that are made in the summer months, from the milk of cows grazing on the lush pastures of the Lessini mountains (considered to be some of the best in Italy). As a result, the cheese changes from year to year, based on what the different plants and grasses the cows are eating.
We get this cheese from a family-run operation that dates back to the 1920s when Ermenegildo Roncolato and his children, Romano and Angelo, began making cheese in the village of Brenton of the Ronca municipality (to the north-east of Verona). Now Romano’s children, Gildo, Giovanni, and Letizia run the operation. They are known for their cheese, but they also raise pigs and make typical cured meats of Verona.
This year’s Malga is amazing to me. Imagine a small production Piave Vecchio and multiply the character, complexity and flavors by 20. That is Monte Veronese Malga.