Bra

Appearance & taste

Bra is a cylinder with a flat top and bottom and a slightly convex side. The wheel measures 30 to 40 cm in diameter, is 6 to 10 cm high and weighs 6 to 9 kg. The cheese contains at least 32 % fat in dry matter.

The two varieties differ clearly. “Bra Tenero” has a light grey, elastic, smooth rind that is not edible, and a medium-firm, supple paste with a few small holes, white or ivory. It has a delicate aroma and tastes mild, pleasantly aromatic and subtly savoury. “Bra Duro” has a firm, hard, dark beige rind that may be treated with edible oil against mould; its paste is light straw-coloured to ochre and likewise has only a few small holes. It tastes more savoury, with sweet and salty notes. In both, fine natural veining may appear directly under the rind. The paste is compact but never dry, and can therefore also be grated.

After moulding, a stylised B, the variety and the producer’s identification number are impressed on the wheel. The round paper label shows a little man with a moustache and hat hugging a cut wheel of cheese; the logo is red for “Bra Tenero” and brown for “Bra Duro”. The background is straw-yellow, and green for “Bra d’Alpeggio”.

Production

The animals mainly eat fresh or preserved green fodder or hay; more than half of this fodder comes from the area. Cow’s milk is used, where applicable with up to 20 % sheep’s or goat’s milk; for “Bra Duro” and the “d’Alpeggio” cheeses it may be partly skimmed. The milk is curdled at 27 to 38 °C with animal rennet or non-animal coagulants. According to the specification, working, moulding and pressing the curd are particularly important. Both varieties are made by the same basic method; Tenero and Duro differ through different techniques and ripening times.

For “Bra d’Alpeggio” the milk comes from cows that are on mountain pastures from 1 June to 15 October; feed supplements may make up at most 10 % of their daily ration. Keeping the animals, milk production, cheesemaking and ripening take place in the area; cutting, packaging and grating are also allowed outside it.

Origin & history

The area lies between the Maritime Alps and the Cottian Alps, which frame the province of Cuneo, and is bounded to the east by the hills of the Langhe and Roero. It is a fertile plateau crossed by the Po, the Tanaro and their tributaries. Compared with the Po plain further east, the winters are colder and drier, with little fog, and the summers less hot. Winds blowing from the mountains in the morning and evening keep the humidity low, which according to the specification benefits ripening. Over the centuries a distinctive microflora has developed that gives the cheese its special characteristics during ripening.

The cheese has its origins in the Alpine part of the region. It also became known at lower altitudes through the herdsmen who came down to the valleys at the end of the summer. It owes its name to the town of Bra, once the most important market for this cheese. According to the specification, it is an integral part of the history and culture of the province of Cuneo.