12 cheeses

Veneto / Trentino, Italy

The aged, skimmed-milk Asiago — nothing like the soft one in the deli case.

Puglia, Italy

A mozzarella pouch full of cream and shredded curd. Cut it at the table.

Southern Italy, Italy

Two gourd-shaped cheeses tied together and hung over a beam, like saddlebags.

Aosta Valley, Italy

The alpine melter behind fonduta, made from a single breed’s raw milk.

Lombardy / Piedmont, Italy

The soft, sweet Gorgonzola — a blue you can eat with a spoon.

Po Valley, Italy

Parmigiano’s older, larger, gentler cousin from across the Po Valley.

Campania, Italy

Water-buffalo milk, stretched by hand, eaten the same day if possible.

Emilia-Romagna, Italy

A 38 kg wheel, twelve months minimum, and a hammer test before it can be sold.

Lazio / Sardinia, Italy

Roman legion rations. Salty enough that a little is the whole point.

Lombardy / Veneto, Italy

Stretched curd hung on ropes and aged with kid rennet until it bites back.

Nationwide, Italy

Whey cooked a second time — the thrift cheese that outlived its thrift.

Lombardy / Val Taleggio, Italy

A square washed rind from Lombardy that smells far worse than it behaves.