With rugged mountains sitting alongside green meadows and fertile valleys, since ancient times the beautiful island of Sardinia has been known for the quality of the milk from its local animals and for the mastery of its cheesemakers.
Over the centuries, many of them had to emigrate abroad or to different Italian regions, but they continued to make incredible cheese, including the intensely savoury Pecorino Romano in Lazio – an essential ingredient for many Roman classics such as Amatriciana and trippa alla Romana. When they eventually returned home, they continued to produce it, which is why the PDO-protected Pecorino Romano so associated with Roman cuisine can also be made in Sardinia. Today, the cheese is one of the island’s most appreciated gastronomic treasures.
However, there are many other cheesy gems to be found in Sardinia. Some of them are well-known, while others are hidden treasures still to be discovered by the foodie universe, mostly made and consumed in country farms and remote villages. Some even face the danger of extinction, as they’re very unusual not just to make, but to eat too.
These are some of the most renowned and most obscure (some would say extreme!) cheeses of Sardinia.