The practice of preserving cheese in pits dates back to the Malatesta era; the legend says that at that time the peasants of Romagna began to dig pits in the tuff under the floors of their homes, to defend food supplies from looting and to preserve them at their best. Since then, this characteristic product has never stopped being produced, and since 2009 it has also received the DOP certification and a related Protection Consortium. According to tradition, the cheeses are buried at the end of August: the forms are wrapped in white cotton cloths and placed in the pits, circular spaces about 3 mt deep, with a mouth of about 80 cm and a base of 2 mt in diameter. At the end of November, the pits are opened and the cheeses returned to the surface. It’s during the 100 days of seasoning that the magic takes place and the cheese acquires that unmistakable herbaceous scent, reminiscent of hay, moss, and wet undergrowth.