Pavino

Roth Pavino: An award-winning Alpine-style cheese

Pavino from Roth Cheese is an award-winning American original. Inspired by the cheesemaker's Swiss heritage and a proud tradition of creating the world's best Alpine-style cheeses, Pavino is a washed-rind cheese with a firm, crystalline texture and complex, concentrated, nutty flavor with an earthy depth that captures the full essence of Wisconsin terroir. Pavino was a first-place winner in the washed-rind cheeses open category at the American Cheese Society Competition in 2018 and is available exclusively at Whole Foods Market.

Roth Cheese

Roth Cheese traces its roots back to Oswald Roth who began making cheese in Uster, Switzerland in 1863. Like so many other cheesemakers, the Roth family eventually made their way to Wisconsin to ply their craft with America's best milk. Now part of Emmi Roth, the company continues to have a well-earned reputation for creating Alpine-style cheeses like gruyere, emmentaler, alpenzeller, and raclette. With authentic copper vats and affinage cellars, Roth is a prime example of the craft of artisan cheesemaking in Wisconsin. Roth's cheesemakers focus both on specialty and artisan cheeses that come from European traditions as well as creating American originals. Along with Pavino, Roth is known for Grand Cru®, its signature Alpine-style cheese, as well as blue cheese, havarti, gouda, fontina, and Canela, a cow's milk spin on Spanish manchego cheese.

Wisconsin Cheese

Roth's Pavino is just one of the more than varieties, styles, and types of cheese you'll find in Wisconsin. When you're looking for the most flavorful cheeses, be sure to also sample a number of award-winning varieties made in Wisconsin. Gran Canaria from Carr Valley Cheese is a triple-milk cheese that's aged two years and cured in olive oil. Sartori's SarVecchio Parmesan is one of the most decorated parmesans made in America. Dragon's Breath Cheddar from Henning's Cheese is made with bits of habanero pepper, while Ewe Calf to be Kidding is America's first triple-milk blue. And be sure to try a bite of Uplands Pleasant Ridge Reserve, an Alpine-style beauty that's the most awarded cheese in American history.

All about Roth Pavino

What does Pavino taste like?

Pavino has a dense texture, an earthy aroma, and complex, rich, malty, nutty flavors.

How Pavino is made

To make Pavino, cheesemakers add rennet to pasteurized milk and heat it to form a curd. The curd is transferred to molds which are turned periodically to drain evenly, then moved to racks. The wheels are submerged in a salt brine to develop the rind and then traditionally aged on wooden boards for a minimum of nine months.

What is an Alpine-style cheese?

An Alpine-style cheese resembles the classic mountain cheeses made in the Swiss, Austrian, French, or Italian Alps. These cheeses are typically semi-firm to hard cow's milk cheeses made in large wheels using minimal salt. The flavor of Alpine-style cheese ranges from nutty and buttery to fruity, spicy, and herbal. Younger cheeses have a smoother texture, while aged Alpine-style varieties may contain more crystals.

Pairing Pavino with food and beverages

What to pour with Pavino

When pouring beer, try a robust variety with a slight sweetness like an amber ale, Belgian-style ale, brown ale, bock, or stout. For wine, a fruit-forward red or white pairs well with an Alpine-style cheese like Pavino. Try a cabernet sauvignon, zinfandel, beaujolais, pinot grigio, riesling, or grüner Veltliner. For something with more punch, a port, madeira, scotch, or rye will all do nicely.

Prepping a cheese board with Pavino

The sophisticated flavors of Pavino are a great addition to any grazing board. Pair this cheese with whole grain crusty bread, pickled vegetables, just-ripe pears, smoked meats and fish, roasted nuts, oil-cured mushrooms, dried cherries, and a handful of walnuts.

Pavino in the kitchen

Pavino bumps up the flavor in any grilled cheese sandwich or ham panini. It melts beautifully into fondue, over potatoes au gratin, and in soufflés. Bake it into savory tarts and quiches, or thinly slice it over Alpine-style soups like French onion.