60. Sacrofanum Pecorino from Sacrofano

The production of this cheese is closely linked to the seasonal availability of milk. In the first half of the 1900s, sheep’s milk was available from September to June, the month in which the transhumance of the Sacrofano flocks began, heading for the greener pastures of the mountains of Ascoli Piceno. They would return in September, and in November the ewes would give birth to their lambs. At the same time, the opposite phenomenon also occurred: in autumn, the shepherds from Monte Vettore, Ussita and Terminillo would move to the Sacrofano pastures, particularly in the “Merlano” area north of Sacrofano. This cheese was made from sheep’s milk and kid’s rennet, and from before the 1950s it formed part of the staple diet of Sacrofano’s farming families.