Cheese: Tasting test

2023 Author: Cody Thornton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-24 11:20

Six cheese evoke childhood memories in us, it is because for some generations crowds of more or less healthy mothers have included them in their children's nutrition.

Everyone has a brand of the heart, but few are excluded from this memory: in an undoubtedly less poetic way than the madeleines of Proustian memory, our search for lost time also passes through soup with cheese.

And fortunately, compared to thirty years ago, even in the triangles of cheese for which children generally go crazy, something has changed, for the better.

THE polyphosphates, first of all, which were the palm oil of the eighties. They used to be pretty much everywhere. Then the news spread about how much they reduce the absorption of calcium, nullifying the best nutritional properties of the cheese.

Most companies have run for cover, removing - who first, who after - the polyphosphates from the ingredients.

Someone (sigh) has evidently decided to shrug, leaving the polyphosphates where they were. Here is revealed who, in our weekly tasting test.

For the Tasting test of Dissapore we have selected ten brands of cheese among the most popular in Italian supermarkets.

CONTENDENTS

My

Crema Bel Paese

Crema Bel Paese - The over-creamy ones

Parmareggio

Susanna

Nonno Nanni

Tiger

Granarolo

Coop

Milbona

JUDGMENT CRITERIA

Packaging

Ingrediants

Gustatory Analysis

The test took place blindly.

# 10 Milbona

Judgment: although the taste analysis did not go badly, the list of ingredients is in our opinion too long to ensure a higher rating for this product.

Packaging: essential, perhaps a little too much. We would suggest more modern graphics. The package is a savings format (24 cheeses.

Ingrediants: the ingredients list is the longest among the contenders and this is not a positive note, especially considering that we are talking about a product intended mainly for children. Contains carrageenan, xanthan gum and polyphosphates.

Taste analysis: the flavor is balanced, it is a cheese that manages to have character without having a too overbearing taste.

Price: 6, 23 € / Kg

In short: Are we still in the eighties?

VOTE: 3 ½

# 9 Susanna

Judgment: the more yellowish color than the other contenders suggests a difference in the type of cheese used. It is the least caloric of the contenders.

Packaging: the image is suitable for a product for children, and the idea of customizing each segment is nice (the subjects portrayed are different).

Ingrediants: a generic "cheese" is indicated as the main ingredient. Contains polyphosphates.

Taste analysis: when tasted, this cheese tastes a little too neutral, which does not excite us. In fact, it is very similar to that of slices, as the logo suggests.

Price: 11, 79 € / kg

In short: A triangular-shaped thin slice

VOTE: 4

# 8 Crema Bel Paese - The overflowers

Judgment: a product from which we expected much more. We do not notice any differences (neither in taste nor in the ingredients list) compared to the other Bel Paese cheeses in competition, so we do not explain much the difference in price and presentation.

Packaging: the graphics are the same as always. The round shape differentiates it from the other contenders. The two-pack is not very practical.

Ingrediants: a generic “cheese” appears in the list, it contains sodium polyphosphates.

Taste analysis: The texture is interesting, much less so is the taste, which seems a bit dull to us.

Price: 8.04 € / kg

In short: Why are these "overflowing" and the others not?

VOTE: 4 +

# 7 Crema Bel Paese

Judgment: Same as above (apart from the particularly competitive price).

Packaging: The choice of Masha and the Bear is undoubtedly a winner: children would also eat boiled broccoli, if they were in the shape of their favorite cartoon. In the information it is evident that it is the "cheese most chosen by Italian families".

Ingrediants: Same as above (including polyphosphates).

Taste analysis: Same as above.

Price: 5, 09 € / kg

In short: Is the difference only Masha and the Bear?

VOTE: 4 ½

(a quarter of a point more than the others because they do not promise excess and cost less)

# 6 Granarolo

Judgment: A cheese with an important taste, perhaps more suitable to be mixed with soup.

Packaging: We like it very much: it's colorful, fun, modern.

Ingrediants: Also in this case we start from a generic “cheese”. The stabilizer is carrageenan.

Taste analysis: When tasted, it has a taste that we find a little intrusive, with a sour note that is too prominent. The taste of Parmesan is recognized.

Price: € 8.50 / kg

In short: We would have preferred a slightly less decisive taste

VOTE: 6 -

# 5 Coop

Judgment: a cheese with a decidedly white color and a very compact consistency. The taste is balanced and not too intrusive.

Packaging: essential.

Ingrediants: the first ingredient is milk (40%). Here, too, a generic "cheese" is indicated, but at least the percentage is defined (35%).

Taste analysis: when tasted it is very neutral (probably because the first ingredient is milk and not cheese). The compact consistency makes it slightly pasty in the mouth.

Price: 7, 14 € / kg

In short: A light cheese

VOTE: 6+

# 4 Tiger

Judgment: a cheese that definitely stands out from all the other contenders, for taste and consistency (it is very compact and not very creamy). It is also the product with the greatest calcium intake.

Packaging: slightly vintage graphics, very recognizable.

Ingrediants: we speak generically of Swiss cheese (51%), in which however 10% of Emmentaler is specified.

Taste analysis: a strong flavor, in which Emmentaler clearly stands out. We don't mind at all.

Price: 11.36 € / kg

In short: From Switzerland with the fury of the tiger

VOTE: 6 ½

# 3 Mine

Judgment: we left a little biased, we admit it. Instead the blind tasting convinced us, as well as the ingredients list.

Packaging: it stands out from the others for its rectangular shape. This further strengthens an already dominant identity in the cheese scene.

Ingrediants: we no longer speak generically of "cheese" but of Parmigiano Reggiano Dop (16.9%).

Taste analysis: in the mouth it is very mellow and with a decidedly persistent taste. The flavor of Parmigiano Reggiano is clear, which certainly gives character to the product.

Price: 7, 92 € / kg

In short: Not just marketing

VOTE: 7 +

# 2 Parmareggio

Judgment: a very tasty cheese, in which Parmigiano Reggiano clearly stands out.

Packaging: The graphics are cheerful, even if not all moms love mice.

Ingrediants: contains 25% of Parmigiano Reggiano Dop. The thickener used is carrageenan.

Taste analysis: when tasted it has a full and important flavor, with a strong Parmesan taste that distinguishes it from most of the other contenders.

Price: 8, 36 € / kg

In short: Parmesan uber alles

VOTE: 7 ½

# 1 Nonno Nanni

Judgment: if in our opinion it wins over the other contenders, it is precisely because it is characterized by a more delicate flavor.

Packaging: the graphics are simple, somewhat familiar.

Ingrediants: the cheese used is stracchino (30%).

Taste analysis: a round, slightly buttery flavor, which leaves us satisfied without invading the mouth.

Price: € 13.90 / kg

In short: Grandparents always win

VOTE: 8

WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED

Let's say that, after childhood, other dairy products are generally preferred to cheese. It will be for the pasty consistency, it will be for the generally savory and decisive flavor, we are talking about a product that drives children crazy and that brings adults back over the years.

There are many mothers who prefer to avoid packaged products. But life often requires practicality, and what you can do is look for foods with an ingredient list that is as short and compelling as possible.

For this reason, for example, we have not given enough to any cheese that contains polyphosphates. Indeed, to tell the truth, we thought we could not find polyphosphates anywhere. Instead, even some unsuspected ones surprised us. As the most mainstream contender of all the evidence did (but positively), demonstrating that prejudice is best left out of the shopping cart.