CHEESE WATCH
Calum Hodgson introduces one of his favourite cheeses
WHILE PARMIGIANO REGGIANO is the king of cheeses, Massimo’s burrata is the undisputed queen – the Marilyn Monroe of mozzarella. Massimo Lubisco loves burrata. One would expect that he would, coming originally from Puglia, the spiritual home of burrata. On holiday in New Zealand, a burrata epiphany struck Massimo and he promptly returned to Italy to take up a threeyear apprenticeship in cheesemaking. Massimo and his wife Marina returned to New Zealand and settled in Dairy Flat with a small team to produce fresh New Zealand-made Italian cheeses. I am now Massimo’s sidekick – Burrata Boy. To the uninitiated, Massimo’s burrata might look like any other mozzarella. What makes this cheese so food porny and decadent is its creamy inside that oozes like a custard-filled doughnut – a simple yet unctuous extravagance that causes food envy. Massimo’s burrata is a fresh Italian cheese made from cow’s milk; a pouch of hot mozzarella is filled with a soft stracciatella filling of curds and cream and then sealed with cold water, creating the signature creamy centre. Incredibly soft and luscious with a light tang and a sweet sourness, it melts in the mouth and coats the tongue – lick the plate clean. All hail the Queen. CALUM HODGSON - THE CURD NERD Calum Hodgson is cheesemonger at Massimo’s instagram.com/nz_curd_nerd.
WHAT STARTED AS international non-méthode sparkling tasting became a prosecco whitewash. Hardly surprising as in recent years this northern Italian sparkling has taken the world by storm. Between 2008 and 2018 prosecco production quadrupled from 150 million to 600 million bottles annually. Prosecco is lower in alcohol, light, crisp and fruitforward, comes in a range of sweetness levels and is available at an affordable price point – it’s not hard to see the appeal.
Prosecco’s affordable price point is as a result of its production using the tank method. Base wine is fermented again in large tanks before being bottled. No secondary fermentation in bottle means none of the many labour-intensive, time-consuming winemaking steps that come with it, therefore prosecco can be on shelves within months of production. Expect more prosecco in the next sparkling issue and given that the Prosecco DOC Consortium has approved the blending of pinot noir with traditional glera grapes to make a rosé prosecco, you can expect to see them blush.