Cheese Database

Stracchino vs Taleggio

Stracchino, field guide plate
Stracchino, photographed

Stracchino

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Soft
Type
Fresh
Rind
No rind
Country
Italy

Stracchino is a soft Italian cheese made from cow's milk and sold very young. The paste is pale, moist, and creamy, and most pieces have no real rind. Crescenza is the freshest form of the same family, and shop labels often use the two names for one product. It is a spreading cheese rather than a long-aged wheel. The usual taste is mild, milky, and a little tangy.

Taleggio, field guide plate
Taleggio, photographed

Taleggio

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Semi-soft
Type
Washed rind
Rind
Washed rind
Country
Italy
Place
Lombardy
Status
PDO

Taleggio is a square washed-rind cow's-milk cheese from Lombardy, and a protected name. It is named for Val Taleggio, in the mountains north of Bergamo.