A fundamentally important aspect of cheese is its
texture, as it strongly influences its other organoleptic characteristics.
The term texture in this case refers to numerous parameters:
- Elasticity: the ability to return to the original shape after it has been deformed
- Adhesiveness: the amount of effort required for the tongue to remove the parts of the product that have stuck to the palate or the teeth
- Crumbliness: the capacity to break into small chunks
- Solubility: how quickly it melts in heat
In Grana Padano PDO, the parameters of elasticity and adhesiveness tend to decrease as the ageing period increases; conversely, crumbliness and solubility, which are fairly low in cheese aged up to 16 months, are very high in cheese aged for more than 20 months.