Primo Gusto Mozzarella

[Christopher]

Hey, Guys,
I went into my local Gordon Food Services yesterday with the hopes of finding Grande Mozzarella only to find their shredded parmesan and some company brand Primo Gusto. There was 2% Mozzarella and 50/50 blend with provolone. Is this cheese repackaged Grande or has someone here tried the mozz? i wanted to do some new york style this weekend but needed info. also there is no good mozz cheese in Cinci except the grocery store variety, but none of the big names.
Thanks,
Christopher

[Pete-zza]

Christopher,

I remember that one of the forum members, Nathan, wrote about Primo Gusto from GFS, and after doing a search the most relevant post seems to be Reply 22 at http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,1009.msg11436.html#msg11436. I vaguely recall having read about the possibility of the Primo Gusto being repackaged Grande but I have not personally seen confirmation of that. I did, however, read at the PMQ Think Tank that the thecheeseguys were at one time the suppliers of the Primo Gusto cheese, and may still be. The problem with private brands is that the supplier can change at any moment and the product may be different as a result. I would ask GFS who the current supplier is.

Peter

[Christopher]

Hi, Peter,
Thanks for replying. i was a bit down after i saw the Grande Parmesan, but no Mozz. i asked if i could order some Grande Mozz., they said yes, but it would be a case of about 4-6 bags worth. too much for me. does freezing cheese work well in your experience?
the one thing i would like to say abut GFS is they had the huge cans of 6 in 1's and bonta pizza sauce. i would definately buy my 6 in 1's there as they were only like 4 something a can for each varitey. they had pizza boxes there to which i thought were neat. the flour selection was all bromated except a few bags of all-purpose.
I would say still the best place for cheese and meats in this area to my knowledge is Jungle Jim's in Fairfield, which unfortunately is about 35-40 minutes away from me, but they carry great italian meats and cheese and calabro mozz and ricottas which are used at Frank Pepes.
Thanks,
Christopher

[Pete-zza]

Christopher,

I have bought both the whole-milk and part-skim Grande mozzarella cheese cut into one-pound blocks that I froze and later used with good results. However, in your case it sounds like you are talking about the bags of shredded Grande cheeses. Not too long ago, in response to a request by a member about the shelf life of a shredded Grande mozzarella/Provolone blend, I called Grande and inquired about the use of the cheeses and whether they could be frozen. I reported on what I learned at Reply 3 at http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,3429.msg29139/topicseen.html#msg29139.

Peter

[Pete-zza]

Christopher,

Seeing your comment about Pepe's using the Calabro mozzarella cheese prompted me to call Calabro to confirm this, especially since their website says that Pepe's is using the Calabro mozzarella cheese (whole-milk) exclusively. I was also hoping to find a local retail source of the Calabro cheeses since Calabro apparently now has a distributor in Houston. As it turns out, Pepe's is no longer using the Calabro mozzarella cheese. Apparently, Pepe's changed brands when one of the owners died. I suggested that Calabro update their website, and was told that a new website is in the works.

Peter

[Christopher]

Thanks, Peter!
i used the calabro mozz once and thought it was good, but dont recollect how much better than my normal stuff. i might have to revisit it soon to do a taste test. i do know their hand packed ricotta was a sight to behold as it mushroomed well passed the top of the container!
Christoher

[Christopher]

Hey, guys,
Just wanted to report back about my primo gusto experience. i went yesterday and picked up a bag of their feather shredded mozz/prov blend and used it on 2 16" lehmann styles last night and today. the cheese was not bad at all. it was stretchy, firm and was not as greasy as i expected it to be, but it is not even close to being as flavorful or have the mouth feel of a fresh mozz or better brands that i have tried. i will say that it colored nicely and didnt burn at all, which was nice. each pizza was baked for about 6-7 minutes or so. i would say it is a step up from your normal cheap block cheeses but a step below the big names. overall worth the 7.49 i spent on a 5 pound bag of cheese, about 3.5 of those pounds i have no idea what to do with yet...
give it a try if you are in an area with a GFS but no access to good mozzarella.
Christopher