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Milk: skimming and combining
Milk comes from a strictly delimited area that lies between Modena, Parma and Reggio Emilia, and partially reaches to Bologna and Mantova.
Academia Barilla selects Parmigiano-Reggiano cheeses made exclusive from latte di collina - milk that comes from the mountains where the freshness of the pasture increases the quality and the richness of the milk.
Milk for Parmigiano-Reggiano comes from two different milkings: evening and morning. The evening milk is skimmed over night. Then, in the early morning hours, the milk from the night before is mixed with full fat morning milk. This mixture is then poured into cone-shaped, 1050 liter (250 gallon) copper tubs.

Coagulation
Milk is warmed up in the copper tub and rennet is added to start coagulation of Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Spinatura
Due to the rennet, the milk turns into gelatin, and when it reaches the right consistency, the Master Cheesemaker (Maestro Caseario) uses the spino to break the gelatin into small, rice-like pieces.
Spino is a contraption with multiple circular blades attached to a long handle. The handling of a spino is a highly respected art form that has to be performed with precision and accurate judgment of when the rice-like pieces are achieved.

Cooking
The mixture is further heated in order to continue the curding process. After some time, the curd solidifies and settles into the bottom of the vat where it forms a large ball.

Lifting and cutting the curd
Using a large wooden spoon, the curd ball is lifted to the surface of the vat, and captured in a large flax cloth. The ball, captured by the cloth, is cut into two equal halves called "Gemelli" - Twins.
Each twin is then bundled into a separate flax sheet which is tied to a bar resting across the vat. This way all remaining water drains from the twins.

Shaping
Each twin is inserted into a circular form to obtain the correct, round, disk-like shape. After a day, a stamping sheet is inserted around the cheese. This imprints the indelible PARMIGIANO-REGGIANO stamp on the surface of the cheese. The cheese rests this way for 2-3 days.

Salting
Cheeses are extracted from their forms and then submerged into special tubs with saline solution. Salt is the only preservative used in Academia Barilla's authentic Parmigiano-Reggiano. In this saline solution they remain for 20-30 days.

Aging
In special aging rooms with controlled temperature and humidity, cheeses are aged for 12 months. The Parmigiano-Reggiano wheels are turned upside down every couple of weeks to assure even aging.

Certifications by the Consortium of Parmigiano-Reggiano
After 12 months, the inspectors of the consortium examine the Parmigiano-Reggiano cheeses. Using a small hammer, they check for defects such as air bubbles and fissures inside the cheese.
If they find no defects, they place a round stamp on the rind. If the cheese does not meet the criteria, the inspectors stamp X signs on the rind, canceling the PARMIGIANO-REGGIANO lettering.

Further aging
After the examination, the cheese can be aged further, up to the total of 24 or even 30 months. Cheeses aged for 24 and more months are called "extravecchio" - "extra old".

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