You never get up from the table if your mouth does not taste like cheese. This ancient Emilia-Romagna proverb contains in itself a good slice (passateci the pun) of truth: in Bologna, cheese at table is obligatory. Whether it is the grated Parmigiano Reggiano on pasta, the squacquerone spread on tigelle or ricotta sweetened by caramelized figs, the mouth must know of cheese – that is good, though.

Here five shops where to buy cheese in Bologna, five unmissable addresses for your dairy purchases:

The Corner of Freshness

The Bologna's most famous cheese shop, well … it's not in Bologna, but in Granarolo. Where in 1991 Valerio Guermandi opened a gastronomic shop, now managed by his son Roberto, who became famous for a selection of cheeses of absolute excellence. Over 150 types available, from Bitto DOP to burrata, from gorgonzola to French goats, from buffalo mozzarella to Piedmontese Slow Food Presidia, passing through the inevitable Parmigiano Reggiano. For sale also balsamic vinegar, compotes and sottoli with which to combine them, as well as pasta, salami and other gastronomic specialties. When you have finished shopping, take advantage of it for a stop at the adjacent bakery of Gino Fabbri, La Caramella.

Ancient Formería Zaratini

We are in the historic center, near the Basilica of Santo Stefano. The selection of cheeses, Italian and foreign, has few equals in the city: we are on the 200-300 references, with daily arrivals 'fresh' from Campania, primarily buffalo mozzarella and fiordilatte. Among the other products available for purchase are cured meats, tuna fillets, jams, honey and mustards to pair with cheeses, and (in season) fresh truffles.

Barber Cheese

It was 1968 when the brothers Bruno and Paola decided to open this shop inside the Bologna Herb Market. From Barbieri there is something for all tastes, from the South to the North, from the creaminess of the squacquerone to the piquancy of the pecorino di fossa, with foreign encroachments between Greece, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and of course France. However, the protagonist remains the Parmigiano Reggiano, in all its nuances of aroma and flavor. They often organize workshops and ad hoc tastings.

La Baita Vecchia Malga

You say 'Buy cheese in Bologna' and think of the Vecchia Malga – and its six stores, one of which, at the Guglielmo Marconi airport, with an adjoining restaurant. In addition to cheeses they sell cured meats, sauces, oil and other local specialties. To be tasted the award-winning Her Majesty Il Nero, a mountain cheese created by Rino Chiari – whose descendants still run the shop – in Pieve di Roffeno, according to an ancient tradition of Capuchin friars: maturing for 24 months, cover of charcoal vegetable and beeswax, thin crust and intense fragrance.

To the Kingdom of Form

This shop set in the central Via Oberdan is famous … for its smell: the forms of Parmigiano Reggiano, from which it has rightly got its name, emanate an irresistible aroma that attracts its gluttonous windows from all corners of the city. Opened in 1923 and still managed by the same family, the Fornari, the shop offers not only Parmesan in every maturing (even 5 years) but also an extraordinary choice of cheeses from all over Italy, typical products and fresh pasta, tortellini inprimis.

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