Italian Food Lovers

Today, March 21, is the first day of Spring; we leave behind us the cold days of winter (not so cold this year, after all) and look forward for more and more beautiful days of primavera, spring time.

So how about planning a trip to Parma, in the heart of Emilia-Romagna and the Italian Food Valley? Academia Barilla could be your perfect host for your Italian gourmet vacations.

Amazing Medieval town rich of culture and with plenty of historic highlights that meet culinary culture (check out our blog article from last year for a virtual visit to the city), Parma is also, as our readership knows, home to Academia Barilla, its Culinary School, and of course BIGAB, Academia Barilla’s Gastronomic Library.

Both Academia Barilla’s Culinary School and Gastronomic Library will release their official calendar of events and gourmet and cultural initiatives soon (you get a peek preview on BIGAB’s activities from a previous post), but make sure that you will have plenty of choices that you can customize.

Academia Barilla’s culinary learning vacations include everything from gourmet tours of the Italian Food Valley to hands-on Italian cooking classes at the Culinary School, cultural guided tours, exploration of traditional farms and local artisan producers of Italian regional specialties and more, including on the cultural side of experiencing Italy. Opera? We got that too. Contemporary art? Of course. Cinema? Yep.

Getting curious? We suggest you stay tuned with this blog for more details coming up soon, but also that you start inquiring at Academia Barilla about the gastronomic and cultural initiatives for 2008. You can call directly Academia Barilla in Parma, Italy at +39 0521 264-060 or toll-free number (numero verde) 800 376-116; if you are in the United States you can reach Academia Barilla the toll-free number 866 772-2233.

In the meanwhile, explore our Parma photo set on Flickr.com! (click on the image to go to the photo set).

See you in Parma in primavera!

Alright, enough talk of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, now let’s taste it – right from the source!
Here are some tasting guides we use in the Academia Barilla test kitchens to sample Parmigiano. Try this at home next time you open a wheel or break off a chunk.

1) Aroma – what does the cheese smell like? Break off a chunk – does the smell change?

2) Taste – insert a small chunk of cheese into your mouth and let it warm up. I usually count to about 10, and then smash the cheese on the upper roof of my mouth, being sure to let all of the flavors melt out and coat my mouth. What do you taste? Is the cheese salty, sweet, acidic, tangy, fruity or bitter?

3) Aroma, again - smell the cheese, but this time from inside your mouth. Does the back of your mouth pick up different fragrances than when you smelled it originally with your nose? Does that reflect itself in the taste of the cheese?

4) Texture – note how the texture of the cheese has changed since you originally put a chunk in your mouth. After 5 seconds, or even 10, does the cheese still hold its original form? After you smash it against the roof of your mouth, are there still smaller granules you taste?

I won’t say that what I experience in Parmigiano cheese tasting is in any way definitive, since each person’s taste is different. However, whenever I taste a perfect Parmigiano, I am reminded of the scents of Hay, as well as of the market cheese shop, and then the flavors of sweet/salty/nutty Parmigiano. I know, that’s a terrible description, but, after growing up with Parmigiano on a near-daily basis….there’s nothing quite like it in the world.

Academia Barilla has these notes, and others, in the cheese tasting guide published on AcademiaBarilla.com.

Now, if you’re planning on coming to Italy any time soon, there are a few excellent resources on where to go to see traditional Parmigiano-Reggiano production, as well as tasting of this excellent traditional Italian gourmet food product.

For all intents and purposes, the links and resources below represent only a few possible places you can look for further information about visiting casefici of Parmigiano-Reggiano in Italy. And, with the clear and distinct exception of the Academia Barilla experiences listed below, Academia Barilla makes no endorsement of any of the following links, resources, or places.

Academia Barilla – Parma, Italy

Come to Italy and learn from the best – Academia Barilla! Our expert staff will be happy to show you around the beautiful Emilia-Romagna region and take you directly to some of the locations where we make Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

In addition, we offer cooking classes to teach you the details and intricacies of this beautiful product. If you’re only in Italy for a limited time, come visit us and we’ll jam-pack your Parmigiano experience into one culinary learning vacation you’ll remember forever.
Consorzio del Formaggio Parmigiano-Reggiano – Parma, Italy, and environsThis organization is dedicated to all things Parmigiano, and has been since its inception over a century ago.It maintains lists of all of the dairies that produce Parmigiano, including Academia Barilla’s contracted dairies, and offers resources on how to get in touch with them. An excellent resource if you’re exploring Parma, Emilia-Romagna and the north-central of Italy on your own.Can’t make it to Italy? Well, luckily, Academia Barilla has your connection to the best cheeses from Italy, and you can sample traditional and authentic Parmigiano-Reggiano DOP cheese and other Italian DOP gourmet products by simply visiting our online store.