Pecorino di Filiano

History and origin

Around Filiano sheep farming has a long history. It goes back at least to the Roman conquest, when shepherds made pecorino during transhumance, following their flocks on the seasonal moves.

Cheesemaking kept growing under the Swabians and Angevins and became better organised in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries under the Doria, feudal lords of the Vulture area, who set up farmsteads specialising in sheep. The cheese that bears Filiano's name grew out of this tradition.

Some gestures are still the old ones: to break the curd a wooden stick with a knob at the top is used, called scuopolo or ruotolo. Pecorino di Filiano is a Protected Designation of Origin, entered in the European register of geographical indications.

Sources: Qualigeo (Fondazione Qualivita) — Pecorino di Filiano DOP · eAmbrosia — Pecorino di Filiano (PDO-IT-0279)

Area and method of production

The production area covers thirty municipalities in the province of Potenza. The milk is whole sheep's milk, from breeds such as Gentile di Puglia and Gentile di Lucania, Leccese, Comisana, Sarda and their crosses; it comes from animals at pasture or fed on local fresh forage and hay and must be processed within twenty-four hours of the first milking.

The raw milk is filtered and heated, traditionally in tinned copper cauldrons, to 40 degrees; between 36 and 40 degrees kid or lamb paste rennet is added. The curd is broken into lumps the size of rice grains, placed in rush baskets called fuscelle and pressed by hand to drain the whey.

After salting, dry or in brine, the cheeses age for at least 180 days, in the typical tuff caves or in suitable rooms. From the twentieth day the rind may be treated with Lucanian extra virgin olive oil and wine vinegar.

Sources: Qualigeo (Fondazione Qualivita) — Pecorino di Filiano DOP

How to recognise it

The shape is cylindrical with flat faces, 15 to 30 centimetres across, with a side of 8 to 18 centimetres and a weight of 2.5 to 5 kilos. The rind carries the marks of the baskets and changes colour with age, from golden yellow to dark brown; the designation's logo is branded on the cheese.

The paste is grainy and crumbly, compact, white to straw-yellow, with small holes scattered irregularly. The flavour is sweet and delicate in younger cheeses, turns slightly sharp at the end of the minimum ageing and grows bolder with time.

On the nose it recalls sheep's milk and grass; well-aged cheeses show a note of toasted hazelnut. It is sold all year round, whole, in halves or in quarters.

Sources: Qualigeo (Fondazione Qualivita) — Pecorino di Filiano DOP

In the kitchen

Pecorino di Filiano is first of all an excellent table cheese, to be enjoyed on its own in shavings or slices.

Its bold taste makes it a natural partner for the hearty dishes of Lucanian cooking. The classic use is grated over fresh pasta with meat ragù, a simple pairing typical of Lucanian homes.

It keeps in a cool, dry place; once cut it should go in the least cold part of the fridge.

Sources: Qualigeo (Fondazione Qualivita) — Pecorino di Filiano DOP

Where to taste it

The heart of this pecorino is Filiano, in the province of Potenza, the town that gives it its name. A festival devoted to the cheese has been held here since 1972, created to tell its story and support production.

The regional tourism agency of Basilicata describes it as the most important cheese festival in the region, dedicated to the PDO sheep's cheese aged in natural caves.

Filiano belongs to the area where the Doria, lords of the Vulture, organised their sheep farmsteads: a trip to the Vulture can include a stop in Filiano and the thirty municipalities of the designation, among pastures and ageing caves.

Sources: Qualigeo (Fondazione Qualivita) — Pecorino di Filiano DOP · APT Basilicata — Le collezioni 2018, Basilicata enogastronomica

Protection

• Protected designation of origin (PDO) — PDO-IT-0279 (eAmbrosia — Pecorino di Filiano (PDO-IT-0279))

When

• The sources consulted give no months.

Where

Basilicata

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