Soto al Croz is a small family-run farm in the town of Lavarone. In addition to providing the local community with wonderful cheese and other products from their livestock, the farm offers educational workshops for all ages. Our group was lucky enough to participate and meet Marisa, who runs the farm with the help of her family.

Becoming Cheesemakers

Cheese processing always starts with quality milk, which we are receiving in this photo. Later, we will enjoy our cheese with dinner!

Before…

The first step to making cheese is to add the “starter culture” (“good bacteria”) and an enzyme to the milk, to help the milk form a solid mass. As the milk solidifies, it forms curd, which is cut up to expel whey.

And After!

The photo above shows what the cheese looks like when the whey is drained away and the cheese hardens.

An Udder Day, An Udder Dollar

Ben is trying his best to milk a fake cow. It’s harder than it looks!

Meeting the Locals

Here we are feeding our new friends. Just a taste of the many friendships we made on our trip to the farm!