The eyes, Chico. They never lie.
Get the reference?..
Anyhoo… You know those circular holes in some cheeses?
They’re called eyes, and they result from a natural process that occurs during cheese fermentation.
In a nutshell, bacteria consume lactose and release other gases, including carbon dioxide (so-called “propionic fermentation”).
The gas bubbles remain trapped in the cheese and, over time, form “eyes”.
The number and size of the eyes depend on various factors, including the aging temperature, the type of milk used (and the bacteria that inhabit it), and the processing technique.
In most cases, this is not a sign of proper or improper aging of the cheese, unless the eyes are particularly large and numerous.
Or unless you’re examining a hard cheese, in which, over a long period of aging, the crystallization of protein and fats occurs, giving the product a compact, grainy texture.
Let’s just say that most of the time, it’s a question of aesthetics.
Or of trypophobia.
Anyhoo… in the photo, a pecorino cheese “with eyes” ripened in the Inox Bim Climatic Cabinet!
