BellaVitano Cheese facts for kids

BellaVitano is a cow's milk cheese made by the Sartori Company of Plymouth, Wisconsin. Introduced in 1999, BellaVitano Gold is one of a number of different cheeses made by the company. It is a hard cheese with a nutty, fruity flavor and is also available in a number of flavored varieties. The cheese, in its various forms, has won a number of international, national, and state awards.

Varieties

• The original variety, BellaVitano Gold, is inspired by traditional Italian farmstead cheese. Starting out like Parmesan, it has a creamy, rich texture with light fruity notes and a sweet and tangy finish. The crunch comes from calcium lactate crystals that form as the cheese ages. Gold was named Grand Champion at the 2013 World Dairy Expo. All BellaVitano varieties are based on this cheese.
• Balsamic BellaVitano is immersed in imported 6-year-old Italian balsamic vinegar. Further aging allows the light, fruity taste of the cheese to marry with the sweet and tangy balsamic vinegar to deliver a sharper taste with some hints of raisins.
• Black Pepper BellaVitano is hand-coated in premium coarse ground black pepper. The salty-spicy bite of the black pepper contrasts with the creamy fruitiness of the BellaVitano.
• Merlot BellaVitano is immersed in a fine Merlot wine which adds fruitiness to the cheese.
• Raspberry BellaVitano is immersed in a tart raspberry ale, giving the cheese a distinctive fruity taste.
• Chai BellaVitano is hand-coated with a blend of Chai spices including black tea, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom and cloves.
• Espresso BellaVitano is hand-coated with fresh ground Italian roast espresso beans to give the cheese the sweet, slightly smoky, roasted flavors of an Italian-style espresso coffee.

Other limited edition varieties of BellaVitano Gold are made available from time to time.