Parmigianno Reggiano at ...

LTH,

I walked into one of this board's most cherished markets/sub shops this afternoon to pick up some Parmesan cheese.

13.99 per pound! Yikes. I left with two pounds of sweet sausage and decided to to some comparison shopping.

Treasure Island had three types in their display case:1,2, and 3 year. The chunks marked one year were priced at 9.99 but were clearly Grana Padano. Shame on them.

Their two year (Reggiano for sure, but after they mis- label the so called one year stuff)) was priced at 11.99. Their three year (who knows it's true age?) was a buck or two higher. Still a better buy than ____.

I guess I shouldn't be too upset with Bari (Oops!). They've gotta make a living and compete with Whole Foods and the rest of the chains.

But $13.99. Ouch.

Geez. Of course, I once saw parmigiano reggiano going for $19/lb at whole foods. That was just absurd.

Caputo's and Caputo Cheese have parmigiano reggiano, straight 18 months I think. They'll cut it off a wheel if you ask.

Edit: oops, forgot to mention the price: $9.99/lb.

I think the $13.99/lb. price tag might be par for the course at the independent markets and shops around town. Earlier this year I bought a pound of Parmiggiano-Regiano at Conte di Savoia on Taylor for around that price. However, it lasted me almost 6 weeks and was far better than the usual Stella Parmesaen brick found at Jewel.

I bought some very lovely grana padana at Caputo's for $8.99/lb last week.

My favorite deli worker recommended it to me over parmigiana reggiano and it was $1 more per pound, so I bit. I needed it grated, so he did it with their machine. He threw in not only my rinds, but some extras he had as well.

I had never had this cheese. It is so bright in flavor. So fruity. I am in love!!!

i was at costco lincoln park this weekend and they had huge triangles of Parmiggiano-Regiano cheese for pretty cheap.

I didn't need that much so I didn't end up buying on but i was pretty shocked at the price.

This thread about parm costs always kills me. If you don't care for lengthy explanations of differences between one wheel and another wheel of parm, and why some may necessarily cost more, scroll to the bottom of this post for a summary.

Let's get this straight: not all parms are created equal or cost the same in wholesale (and thus retail), for good reasons. There are tremendous differences between the flavor (and desirability) from season to season, farm to farm. Some farms are in the mountains, and during spring, summer, and fall the cows graze on grass. Some farms are in the valley, and the cows eat hay for most of the year that comes from one (or more) fodder producers. Some farms are tiny. Others are huge.

There are 492 dairies producing parm, and nearly 5000 producers of milk. You can bet that there is a large variance in quality and flavor.

Once cheese is produced, it ages in a large warehouse. Some of these warehouses are cooperative, others are owned by companies who select and market the cheeses in their warehouse under their own label. Marketing labels include Virgilio, Rocca, Cravero, etc. They will charge a premium for products that they vet and sell as their own.

At this point, a digression: is every chardonnay produced in Chablis under AOC regulation considered to be equal and sold at the same prices? Absolutely not. Yet each is produced under the identical rules and regulations. The difference is in the skill of the winemaker, the handling of the product, expression of attributes in the final product and other factors. The same can be said of Parmigiano-Reggiano, which is produced under strict regulation following DOP (Denominazione di Origine Protetta) guidelines.

DOP, along with grading (there are three grades: XX, regular Parmigiano-Reggiano, and Extra) has ensured that there are no truly awful parms, but nor are there truly incredible ones. It has, in effect, leveled the playing field - but not to the extent that there are no differences. With a natural, seasonal product, there inevitably will be differences. You will occassionally see parm in stores that is scored with parallel lines ringing the cheese - this is a cheese that was determined not to be of high enough quality for export. It is exported all the same, and frequently shows up in US stores (I've seen it at Fairway in NYC) for less than better quality cheeses. If you see two XXs over the number, it is a pretty good sign that you should turn your nose up and run.

The Consorzio del formaggio Parmigiano-Reggiano publishes a book with a guide to the farms. This is available from the consorzio. Nancy Radke, who represents the Consorzio in the US, is an incredible resource and conducts some of the most informative classes on parm that I have ever had the pleasure of attending. If you see a class she is teaching, I urge you to attend.

Of course, most of this is irrelevant if you are buying cheese to shave on pasta or for some other creation where it is a minor player or will be overwhelmed by other ingredients. If you are buying it to have it stand out as a feature of the dish or to eat on its own, however, it is always best to seek out top quality, which you will not find for $9.99 a pound.

In summary, the things that impact the price of Parm:
-Quality and grade, sometimes age
-Desirability of a particular farm's cheese (indicated by number on front of cheese) and season (sometimes premiums are charged for summer)
-Whether it is chosen and marketed by a selection house
-Individual store markup
-Market factors like energy costs, tariffs, etc
-If it is packaged and shipped in wedges at the wholesaler or in Italy or if labor is involved at the store in cutting and wrapping
-Cult Status (Vacche Rossa)

Resources:
http://www.parmigiano-reggiano.it/home.cfm
http://www.crpa.it/home/it/Progetti/sifpre/
http://www.dcq-pr.it/cms/index.php

-end of rant-

The cost kills me as well but I feel that there is a huge difference between the $9.99 a pound cheese available at Caputo's, Valli, etc and the $19.99 a pound that I pay for the cheese at Fox and Obel. IMHO the more expensive cheese has more character, fuller flavor and doen't taste off

One question that I do have is whether or not Vacche Rossa is worth the additional couple dollars a pound? Fox and Obel was selling it last weekend but I opt'ed to not give it a try because I was using the cheese for a recipe and thought that the more expensive Parm was probably better for eating out of hand as opposed to being used in my Thanksgiving Stuffing recipe.

BTW - The best Parm that I have ever purchased was from Zingerman's. The cheese had been aged for 2 years, the rind was a mahagony brown, the cheese was nutty, complex and utterly delicious, it is probably what ruined me for cheaper versions of the cheese.

Kirkland Signature Whole Wheel Parmigiano Reggiano, 72 lbs. - $899 @ Costco = $12.50/lb. Make some friends!

https://www.costco.com/Kirkland-Signatu ... 96211.html

Dave148 wrote:Kirkland Signature Whole Wheel Parmigiano Reggiano, 72 lbs. - $899 @ Costco = $12.50/lb. Make some friends!

https://www.costco.com/Kirkland-Signatu ... 96211.html

Also a good price for an ottoman.