Named for the nearby village of Cravanzana, the exquisite Cravanzina is yet another gem from Northern Italy's Caseificio dell'Alta Langa. This prolific family-run dairy in the Piedmont region produces at least 20 different cheeses, including the luscious La Tur, Brunet and Rocchetta.
Its specialty is mixed-milk cheeses – blends of cow's, sheep's and goat's milk – that are intended to be eaten young. Most have soft, bloomy rinds and silky interiors, but within that description, the dairy manages to produce wheels with remarkably distinct personalities.
Cravanzina is my latest discovery, a thin, round disk weighing about a half-pound, with a soft, smooth, pristine crust. It is modeled after Paglierina, a traditional cheese of the region, so named because, in times past, the wheels were aged on mats of straw ("paglia" in Italian).
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