04 Jun Capre e Cavoli goat cheese dairy
Mild goat's cheese direct from the producer
The road gets steeper and narrower, there’s a rumble, my friend Brigitte’s small car slams into a pothole and I fear the worst: we’ve probably got lost and now have a flat tire. But she remains relatively nonchalant: “Don’t worry, I’ve driven up here many times. We have to turn left back there. I think so. Or right…” AHA! But a few minutes later, we are actually standing in front of Chiara and her husband Renato’s quaint, secluded house. We ring the bell. A woman’s voice comes from somewhere, inviting us to come in. We are standing in a small anteroom and through a window we can see the production room, where various cheeses are already resting on a table and fresh whey is dripping from a bag. I’m in paradise, because I do a lot for goat’s cheese… And then the lively Chiara comes around the corner, puts on her cheeky hat and asks what we want.
But it’s not quite “make a wish” with Chiara. It’s just what’s ripe at the time. For us to choose from: Soft cheese, young hard cheese, ricotta and yogurt. I have a bit of everything and a goat’s salami on top! Unfortunately, the blue cheese I was after was still too young. It needs a few more weeks. No problem… Anticipation…
Chiara and Renato only do direct sales. Most of the cheese goes to local restaurants or is sold at festivals. And they have a WhatsApp list and write on Tuesdays what will be available at their fixed sales stands and times in the coming days and then you can buy it directly there. In Laveno Mombello, for example, on Thursdays at 6 pm in front of the Coop.
The goats' boss is Renato
While Chiara takes care of cheese and sausage production, marketing and numbers, her husband Renato is responsible for the goats. His 37 protégés are allowed to graze freely in the countryside. Renato decides when and where. Traditionally, he takes them to where the best herbs are growing or where the grass is particularly lush. He spends the whole day outside with the goats. He has been doing this for 25 years and can’t imagine anything better. He never gets bored. “It’s like being out with a school class. You always have to keep an eye on what the children are up to, to make sure they don’t eat any poisonous herbs and don’t get into fights.” All the goats have a name, which Renato of course knows. Funnily enough, Renato sometimes gives them several names in the course of their lives, depending on which typical characteristics his protégés develop.
Normally, goats are only kept for four to five years for milk production. Renato’s goats are allowed to stay until they are ten. They then only produce a little milk or are dry, but he doesn’t have the heart to give them away earlier or slaughter them. He often gives away goats that no longer produce milk to garden owners who use them as lawnmowers.
On average, a dairy goat gives three liters per day during a lactation phase that lasts about eight months, after which the goats stand dry for a few months. Three liters per goat per day is not a lot. This is the reason why Chiara strives for the highest possible level of refinement in her products in order to achieve the highest possible yield from one liter of milk.
The family gets by well with what the goats and their small vacation home bring in. Two children have left home and the young daughter has to be driven to school by car.
Fun fact on the side: As a child, the older son only had a drum kit to spend his free time on apart from the goats. So he hammered away on his drums day in, day out and is now the drummer in the internationally renowned heavy metal band Frozen Crown.
My friend Brigitte and I make our way home. Fortunately, the tires held up, only one hubcap was missing, which we luckily found again in a sharp bend.
So if you want to visit Capre e Cavoli, you should drive a sturdy car. Contact: http://www.capreecavolivararo.it/
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