Tuma Persa

Made with thermised cow’s milk, from herds grazing the Monti Sicani, in Sicily’s Palermo region.

When Salvatore Passalacqua decided to move from his family’s baking business and into his very own dairy farm, his sole aim was to create cheeses that emerged from traditional Sicilian recipes, with an emphasis on respect for land and genuineness. Salvatore’s discovery of a small book in the early 90s, entitled Sicilian Cheeses and dating back to 1936, changed his life. The book featured all the known Sicilian cheeses, except for one which seemed to have been forgotten, the Tuma Persa. Tradition dictated that the cheese was to be ‘forgotten’ for a dozen days, taking advantage of the spontaneous fermentations that are created.

This is a superb, rare cheese, produced solely by Salvatore in an area of Sicily which is very rich and fertile, with an altitude of approx 700m. The cheese is abandoned for 8 to 10 days, then washed and abandoned again for another 10 days, after which it is cured in olive oil and milled black pepper and left to mature for 3 to 8 months.

A cheese that is wonderfully rich in flavour, long, intense and spicy, within which we find hints of nature the animal grazes. Pairs perfectly with smooth acacia honey.

Italy, Sicily, Palermo.