Texture profile of Montasio cheese

As the texture or body of a cheese contributes greatly to its identity and quality, the present study aimed to define an instrumental texture profile for a typical semi-hard Italian cheese (Montasio) using elasticity, hardness, cohesiveness, gumminess and chewiness parameters, determined with an Instron Universal Testing Machine. The experimental work involved fifteen typical Montasio cheeses produced in north-east Italy from unpasteurised cow milk, according to the genuine traditional method. The texture profiles were drawn in a 5 axis radar diagram in which each axis represented a single texture parameter. The parameter values were standardised by assigning 10 scale units to the maximum value measured and calculating the respective value for the confidence interval. The areas between the confidence limits represented the typical texture profile for 60 day-old Montasio cheese.