Article by Matteo Donelli
Transhumant shepherds of the Casentino in the mid-700s, and today a modern company that is the flagship of pecorino production. Almost three centuries of history in Roccalbenga in the heart of the Maremma. The dairy was born from an intuition of Duilio after the war, to go against the needs of the consumer in search of a standardization of the product in terms of shape and taste. Until then the cheese was produced directly by the shepherds, who resold the surplus to the merchants, but for this reason the organoleptic characteristics varied widely.
Thus Il Fiorino was born, one of the first dairies built in Tuscany with so many initial difficulties as the shepherds were reluctant to sell their milk "transformed" by a third actor. Dulio, nicknamed “the surly magician of Tuscan pecorino” and founding member of the Tuscan DOP consortium, will be among the first to bring raw milk cheeses back into production. Even today, all the processes are carried out by hand, from the ricotta taken by surfacing, to the salty shapes, turned and brushed strictly by hand. Only milk from Maremma and one of the few dairies with rocky spur caves
At the end of the nineties the generational change: Angela took over the management at the age of twenty-eight. Tradition remains the pillar of the company. Flanking her partner Simone Sargentoni. Very young, enthusiastic and fascinating of ancient history, they begin a process of re-enactment of the cheese thanks to an in-depth research: And here is the Marzolino cheese of the Medici, which according to legend was donated by Caterina dei Medici at the wedding of Henry II in France. Given in Rome to the Pope during the feast of San Giovanni dei Fiorentini, a tradition that was carried on by the Fiorino with its marzolini. Fior di Natura: a premium cheese for innovation, but vegetable rennet was typically used by the Etruscans.
Today's numbers are record-breaking: 28 employees and a turnover that continues to grow steadily by over 4 million euros
Harrods warehouses in London as an established customer for thirty years. Over 100 international awards and an obsessive care of the whole process, managing to bring the pecorino maturation to almost three years thanks to “highly technological cells” capable of climate-simulating the best of conditions. “But the entrepreneurial risks are still high and since we want to guarantee top quality, we work with a strong selection throughout the process” says Angela.
We are also working towards the evolution of our products thanks to the ability of our collaborators who have now accentuated the sensitivity of reading the "cheese rind". We feel like a family in a cheese workshop where we can all express ourselves as individual artists of the dairy art ".
Like the great Italian wines, the emotions offered by a “5-year vertical of Fiorino cheeses” are those moments that great connoisseurs from all over the world recognize as unique sensory taste experiences on a par with contemplating a great artistic masterpiece.
Article by Matteo Donelli
