The Four Ages of Asiago
Asiago is one of the more confusing Italian cheeses to shop for, because the same name covers four very different cheeses — distinguished only by how long the wheel has aged. A young Asiago is soft, mild, and almost mozzarella-like. An old Asiago is hard, crystalline, and reminiscent of Parmigiano Reggiano. They share a producer, a region, and a starting recipe, but the eating experience couldn't be more different.
Asiago DOP comes in two broad styles: Asiago Pressato (the fresh, pressed version) and Asiago d'Allevo (the aged version), which is then divided into three age grades — Mezzano, Vecchio, and Stravecchio. Each one shifts the cheese further along the spectrum from fresh and creamy toward firm and concentrated:
- Asiago Pressato (also called Fresco) — aged 20-40 days. Soft, sweet, and milky, with a pale yellow color and a moisture content high enough that the cheese still has elasticity. Eats more like a young table cheese than an Italian grating cheese. Best on a sandwich, in a salad, or melted onto pizza.
- Asiago Mezzano (Medium) — aged 4-6 months. The point where the cheese starts to lose moisture and firm up. Still mild, but with more character than Pressato. The texture is semi-firm; the flavor reads as sweet and slightly nutty.
- Asiago Vecchio (Old) — aged 10-15 months. Firm, grainy, and pronounced in flavor. The texture starts to break rather than slice cleanly. Good as both a table cheese and a grating cheese.
- Asiago Stravecchio (Extra Old) — aged 15-18+ months. Hard, crystalline, with an amber-colored paste and a flavor reminiscent of Parmigiano Reggiano — toasted nuts, brown butter, a long savory finish. The grating-cheese version of Asiago, but firm enough to also shave onto a salad or a board.
We currently carry the Stravecchio version. The Pressato (Fresco) returns to stock periodically; if you want to be notified when it does, the product page has a notify option. For the broader range of aged Italian and European cheeses, our aged cheese collection covers Parmigiano, Pecorino, Grana Padano, aged Gouda, and the other styles that benefit from time in a cellar.
Asiago Stravecchio: The Aged Version We Carry
The Stravecchio in stock comes from Mitica, an Italian producer working with milk from the Asiago Plateau in the Veneto region — the protected DOP zone that's the only place legally allowed to label its cheese as Asiago. The wheels age for at least 12 months and often longer, in mountain dairies at the same elevation where the milk is produced.
What the aging does, in plain terms: moisture drops from the original wheel by about a third, which concentrates the flavor and tightens the texture into something firm enough to grate but still tender enough to shave. Tyrosine crystals form throughout the paste, giving the cheese that pleasant crunchy bite. The flavor moves from the sweet, dairy-forward profile of young Asiago toward something deeper — toasted hazelnut, brown butter, dried hay, sometimes a hint of dried fruit. It's the version of Asiago that Italian shoppers tend to keep on hand for grating onto pasta or shaving over roasted vegetables, but it holds its own on a cheese board alongside aged grating cheeses like Parmigiano Reggiano.
How to Use Asiago Stravecchio
Asiago Stravecchio is a more flexible cheese than its hardness suggests. Grated, it sits comfortably in any recipe that calls for Parmigiano — pasta, risotto, polenta, soup, baked vegetables — and brings a slightly different character: a touch more sweetness, a touch less salt. Shaved with a vegetable peeler, it lands cleanly on a salad of bitter greens, roasted beets, or shaved fennel. As a board cheese, it pairs the way other aged Italian cheeses do, but particularly well with cured pork.
The classic Italian pairings are the strongest: prosciutto di Parma, soppressata, or coppa from our charcuterie collection, plus mostarda, fig jam, or a drizzle of aged balsamic. For wine, a Veneto red works best — Valpolicella, Amarone, or a Chianti Classico from further south. Asiago is not a great melter compared to a young cheese like Pressato; if you want to use it in a melted application, treat it the way you would Parmigiano, finely grated and added at the end rather than expecting it to stretch.
Also Worth Exploring
For a wider view of Italian and European grating cheeses, our hard grating cheeses collection covers Parmigiano Reggiano, Grana Padano, Pecorino Romano, and aged Asiago alongside other styles built for the same job. For firmer Alpine-style cheeses with a similar age profile, our Gruyère and Alpine collection covers Comté, Gruyère, Beaufort, and the Swiss and French mountain cheeses that share Asiago Stravecchio's nutty, firm character.
Asiago Cheese: Frequently Asked Questions
Asiago is a cow's milk cheese from the Asiago Plateau in Italy's Veneto region, made in the same area continuously since the 10th century. It carries a protected DOP (Denominazione di Origine Protetta) designation, which means only cheese made from cows grazing on this specific high-altitude plateau, following traditional methods, can legally be sold as Asiago. The cheese is sold at four different ages — Pressato (fresh, 20-40 days), Mezzano (medium, 4-6 months), Vecchio (old, 10-15 months), and Stravecchio (extra old, 15-18 months or more). Young versions are mild, creamy, and good for melting or sandwiches, while aged versions are firm, crystalline, and used for grating, much like Parmigiano Reggiano. Asiago is one of the most flexible Italian cheeses precisely because of this range.
Asiago DOP comes in two broad styles — Pressato (pressed, fresh) and d'Allevo (raised, aged) — with the aged version divided further into three age grades. Pressato, also called Fresco, is aged just 20-40 days and is soft, mild, and pale yellow, used mostly as a table or sandwich cheese. As the wheel ages into Mezzano at 4-6 months, the texture starts firming up while the flavor keeps a sweet, slightly nutty character. By the time it reaches Vecchio at 10-15 months, the cheese has become firmer and grainier, with more pronounced flavor that holds its own grated or sliced. The longest-aged grade, Stravecchio, runs 15-18 months or more and develops a hard, crystalline texture, amber-colored paste, and a flavor close to Parmigiano Reggiano. Each version eats and cooks differently, even though they all start from the same wheel.
Stravecchio is an Italian word meaning "extra old" or "very old," and it's the longest-aged grade of Asiago DOP. To qualify for the Stravecchio label, the cheese must be aged at least 15 months in the protected production zone in Veneto, and many producers age their wheels for 18 months or longer. The extra aging changes the cheese on every level: moisture drops, the paste hardens and develops a granular texture, tyrosine crystals form throughout, and the flavor concentrates into something nutty, savory, and complex, with notes of toasted hazelnut and brown butter. It's the version of Asiago most often used the way Italians use Parmigiano Reggiano — grated over pasta and risotto, shaved onto salads, or served as a table cheese alongside cured meats and mostarda.
The right substitute depends on which age of Asiago you're after. By style:
- Young Asiago Pressato (Fresco) — mild Italian cow's milk cheeses like fresh provolone, young Caciocavallo, or high-quality fresh mozzarella for melting applications.
- Mid-aged Asiago Mezzano or Vecchio — young Manchego, a younger Gouda, or Fontina all work well, with similar firmness and a comparable nutty-sweet profile.
- Aged Asiago Stravecchio — Parmigiano Reggiano is the closest match, since they share the crystalline texture, the long aging period, and the grating role in the kitchen, though Stravecchio runs slightly sweeter and less salty.
Pecorino Romano is the sheep's milk equivalent for similar grating uses, and Grana Padano is another close Italian cousin to Stravecchio, slightly milder than Parmigiano but used the same way. For a deeper view of grating-style cheeses, our hard grating cheeses collection covers the full range.