Soft/Fresh Cheeses

A soft cheese may still have been matured. Assolatte distinguishes fresh cheeses, ready to eat after production without a ripening stage, from soft cheeses that often undergo a brief maturation. The latter owe their softness to the high moisture in the paste.

For a delicate flavour and aroma, look among the fresh cheeses, such as mascarpone, burrata or primo sale. For a soft cheese with a maturation stage, crescenza is one example in Assolatte’s account. When choosing, ask about both texture and maturation: softness alone does not tell you whether a cheese is fresh.