There is a huge variety of cheeses in the world, and Italy is world famous for many of them. Each cheese has its own flavor and aroma (1), so that it can be said that there is a cheese for every taste.
But where does the taste of cheese come from? First, from milk.
The taste of cheese: the role of milk
All cheeses are derived from milk. How, then, do they have such different tastes, aromas and textures from each other? Of course, the type of milk you start with already has a huge influence on the finished product: cow’s milk tastes different from goat ‘s or buffalo milk, so the resulting cheeses will retain some of these differences.
It has been observed that even the type of animal feed affects the aroma of the milk they produce by significantly varying the levels of certain plant-derived odor molecules, such as terpenes (2).
But even starting from the same type of milk, many different varieties of cheese can be obtained. How is this possible?
The action of enzymes on sugars and proteins
Many of the differences between the flavors of various cheeses are due to theaction of enzymes during the production process. These enzymes, which act on the three main components of milk, can be contained in rennet that is used, or they may be produced by the wide variety of microorganisms that grow in cheeses. The main components of milk that are transformed by enzymes are sugars, proteins, and fats (3).
The breakdown of sugars, particularly lactose, allows the growth and fermentation of microorganisms that colonize cheese. This process means that the longer the cheese matures, the lower the amount of lactose and other sugars will be, as they are consumed by the microbial flora.
Proteins are long chains of amino acids, which are normally found concatenated to each other like so many beads in a multicolored necklace. Enzymes called proteases gradually degrade proteins, breaking them up into smaller and smaller chains and then, over time, coming to release individual amino acids as well.
Some amino acids have a particular taste and thus influence the final flavor of the cheese. My favorite isglutamic acid, better known as glutamate, and I also use it often in cooking to add that “extra touch” to my dishes that makes them taste better. It is an amino acid found in milk protein (but also in almost every other protein in the world, including those of which we are also made). When found in free form, it imparts a particular taste to food, a taste that has been called umami , meaning “savory,” and is one that our tongue is able to recognize, along with sweet, salty, bitter and sour.
Some very aged cheeses are rich in glutamate, which has been gradually released by proteases during the long ripening time. Therefore, these cheeses will be particularly flavorful, with a rich taste.
Fats, the main culprits of cheese flavor
The leading part in determining the flavor of cheese, however, is reserved for fats and their processing products.
The main fats in milk are triglycerides, which are not particularly aromatic. However, when these triglycerides are degraded by enzymes called lipases, a wide variety of simpler components, fatty acids, are released. These compounds are made of carbon chains, which can be longer or shorter. The shorter the chains, the more volatile these fatty acids are, that is, able to be released into the air and reach our noses, bringing the odorous sensations.
The most famous short- and medium-chain fatty acids are thebutyric acid (which has a terrible rancid butter smell when taken individually at high concentrations) and the three typical “cousins” of goat’s milk: thecapronic acid, caprylic e caprinic (If you have ever approached a goat, you know that they do not smell particularly pleasant either). When they are taken in the right doses and their levels are balanced with those of other odorous substances, they give the cheese a distinctive aroma and flavor that helps make that product unique.
So, to summarize
The final flavor of the cheese is determined by a combination of factors, including the origin of the milk, the feeding of the producing animals, enzymes, microorganisms, and ripening time (even the place of ripening!).
By just changing the initial conditions a little, a potentially infinite variety of different cheeses can be obtained. Some cheeses undergo additional treatments, such as aging, to change their flavor through the addition of other ingredients, fermentation in closed containers, or proximity to herbs, hay, or beer (4).
That is why it can be said that there is a cheese for every taste!
NOTES AND REFERENCES
(1) Smell and taste are strongly linked, and what is commonly described as “taste” actually refers to the flavor or taste of food and drink, that is, the combined perception of taste and aroma. Anna D’Errico, https://perfectsenseblog.com
(2) G Tornambé, A Cornu, P Pradel, N Kondjoyan, A P Carnat, M Petit, B Martin, Changes in terpene content in milk from pasture-fed cows. J Dairy Sci. 2006 Jun;89(6):2309-19
(3) https://www.ruminantia.it/aromi-dei-formaggi-tra-biologia-e-cultura
