The Cheese Course: Parmigiano-Reggiano: One of the world's best cheeses

Giovanni, a native of Emilia-Romagna, has been making Parmigiano-Reggiano his entire life and still holds his breath every time a Consortium official judges his cheese.

I've never witnessed such suspense as the cheese-tester tapped the firm golden rind with his percussion hammer and listened carefully to the way the crust took the blows. Piercing through the firm outer layer with a thin, screw-like needle he extracted a minute sample to examine the paste for resistance, aroma and texture.

It was like watching a doctor perform a thorough physical on an important patient and scribbling notes without uttering a word until he...