Cheese factory “La Fonte”: great pecorino cheese and ricotta of the Sienese Crete

I often drive through the enchanting Sienese Crete, to the tiny village of Torre a Castello, located about 20 kilometres away from Siena, to taste and buy the delicious cheese made in this magnificent area. The landscape is impressive and heart capturing: in Spring it’s dominated by the intense green of the gently undulating hills, dotted with yellow wild flowers, whereas in Summer is decorated by vivid sunflowers.

crete-senesi

Crete Senesi

As I work in Siena, I cross the Sienese Crete almost every day and sometimes I exit the highway Siena – Bettolle at Castelnuovo Berardenga Scalo and I drive the curvy and scenic roads of the Crete up to Torre a Castello. Right on the main road of the village, opposite the small square with a well where you can park your car, the cheese factory Caseificio La Fonte is a very small shop selling directly from the producer to the consumer its wonderful pecorino cheeses (fresh, semi-cured and cured, also coated either with ash, pepper or vinasse), and a fantastic ricotta cheese  (whey cheese made from sheep’s milk, slightly grainy but soft and creamy). We definitely love these products, and it’s marvellous to buy such delicacies directly from the producer and, in the case of ricotta, just some hours after the production.

caseificio-la-fonte

Caseificio La Fonte

The cheese factory provides with its products many shops in Siena, but the direct sale guarantees even more quality and a better price. Try the ricotta and let us know! The shop is open every day in the afternoon from 16:30 to 19:30. If the shop’s door is closed, just ring the bell and the owners who live in the same building will immediately come to you. If you happen to be in the area on Sunday, go to the Cheese factory very early or you won’t find the ricotta, that is sold like hot cakes! 

ricotta-senese

Ricotta e pecorino fresco

On your way back, in the waiting of tasting the special products that you’ll have bought,  admire the landscape and the great view going from the Mount Amiata to the Massif of Pratomagno, Siena and the Chianti area. When I drive to Torre a Castello I often come across some pheasant walking slowly on the fringes, and the last time I went there, I saw a magnificent hawk on a fence. If you are looking the panoramic Tuscan landscape of calendars and postcard, this is definitely the place!

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