The "bastard" Cheese cave at Campo Sasso
Campo Sasso is a family initiative that embodies our deep passion for high-quality food and sustainable agriculture. Located in the northeastern part of Chianti Classico, Campo Sasso is an estate where we cultivate olive trees and vines, and it is home to our Cave Bâtarde, dedicated to the aging of selected cheeses.
The concept of the Cave Bâtarde is rooted in the heritage of Pierre Gouttenoire, the master affineur at Campo Sasso. Pierre hails from the Roquefort region and comes from a family of farmers and sheep breeders whose property housed one of the natural cheese caves once known as "bastarda" (cave bâtarde). A century ago, these caves were used to age blue-veined farmhouse cheeses. With the 1925 PDO decree, which restricted the aging zone to within the village boundaries of Roquefort on Mount Cambalou, these caves were abandoned.
Almost a century later, we created our own cave to mature a selection of French and Italian cheeses sourced from the finest artisans. The aging process involves maturation that can last from just a few days to several months, in an environment rich in microflora, maintained through careful control of temperature, ventilation, and humidity, along with manual techniques such as turning and washing. Thanks to this meticulous care, each cheese reaches its optimal stage of maturation before being displayed in our cheese shop in Florence, Formaggioteca Terroir. In the photo on the left is the century-old cave bâtarde, while on the right is the modern one at Campo Sasso.
I nostri prodotti del cuore
CHEESE
The first cheese selected at Campo Sasso is Sasso Forte.
Emilie and Alexandre Vialettes are farmers, shepherds, and cheesemakers who run their biodynamic farm, Alcas, located just a few kilometers from the village of Roquefort. With a deep passion for blue cheeses, they produce raw milk cheeses from their 300 Lacaune sheep.
The meeting between Emilie and Alexandre Vialettes and Pierre Gouttenoire gave birth to a truly unique blue cheese: Sasso Forte, created in the lands of Roquefort and matured in the cave bâtarde in Tuscany.
WINE, OLIVE OIL & BALSAMIC VINEGAR
Our range of products continues with Sasso Rosso Toscana IGT, a wine made from grapes grown in the biodynamic vineyards surrounding Campo Sasso, in the Val d’Ema, northeast of Chianti Classico. This wine is the result of a collaboration between Simone Zemella and Pierre Gouttenoire, both oenologists who share a deep passion for wine—though they each interpret it in slightly different ways.
On the Sasso Rosso label, you won’t find any mention of the vintage, grape varieties, or blend. It’s a wine meant to be experienced with your senses.
Do you like it or not? That’s all that matters.
Our Chianti Classico DOP Extra Virgin Olive Oil is produced in collaboration with our neighbors, the Pruneti family, whose mill is equipped with state-of-the-art machinery to ensure oil of the highest quality. The oil is organic, filtered, and adds a uniquely fresh touch to any dish. In fact, at Formaggioteca, we use only this oil.
Our PGI Balsamic Vinegar is the result of a partnership with a family from Torre Maina, near Modena. The Trebbiano grape must is cooked to concentrate its flavors, then transferred into barrels of various sizes and types of wood. Over time, through slow evaporation, the product is reduced and transferred several times into progressively smaller barrels. After about 10 years of aging, the vinegar is ready to be bottled.