THE INTERVIEW
STEFANO TRINEI: THE BEGINNINGS AND GROWTH OF HIS DAIRY
Today we’re launching a new series we’ve called “The Interview.” We will periodically feature questions and answers from the key figures in our creative and production hub, made up of businesses we are proud of. As described in detail in a previous article, when we talk about the Flea Universe, we are not referring solely to the world of brewing, but to a collection of activities that coexist within the brewery, ranging from the food sector to green energy, and including cosmetics. We’re kicking off this series with Stefano Trinei, owner of the dairy of the same name, who embraced our vision of uniting Umbrian excellence into a single world guided by a shared philosophy, becoming a partner in our venture. Together with Stefano, we’ll describe—for those who don’t know him—the founding of his artisanal dairy, sharing anecdotes and tracing his journey in the agricultural and entrepreneurial sectors.
Stefano, your dairy business is just as young as you are. How did you come up with the idea to take on this challenge?
It was quite a challenge. The farm was founded in 2012 out of a passion—especially my father’s—for this fascinating, complex, and delicate industry. We had no expertise to speak of at first, but we decided to embark on this journey starting from scratch, with the help of my brother Fulvio, who has been with our company from the very beginning. We took advantage of the area where we are fortunate enough to live, which offers land perfectly suited for grazing livestock. After finishing my studies in economics, I decided to throw myself fully into the business that was gradually taking shape. Cattle farming began hand in hand with the idea of producing milk and cheese: we started with 16 head of cattle in a barn on the hills of Casacastalda, in Monte della Dea. One of our cows bears this name in honor of our roots: Dea, along with Fisichella, Wanda, and Dolcina. For us, it’s important to build a bond with the animals and introduce them to our customers as if they were, in every sense, members of our family. A happy animal gives you a quality product made with the same love you give it.
What was your first experience with your cows like?
Our family—and I, above all—has always been passionate about nature and animals. So it wasn’t hard for me to bond with the cows. In the months leading up to the opening of our first dairy, I actually tried my hand at milking by hand. It’s a beautiful art that requires not only manual skill but also respect for the animal itself—it must feel safe and trust you to give you what is most precious to it. Now that the dairy is operating at full capacity and we’ve reached our maximum herd size—70 cows—the barn is fully automated, with minimal stress on the animals. Each cow is monitored individually and fed a personalized diet based on her daily milk production. In short, the whole system is so smart that the barn runs itself without us ever setting foot inside, facilitating monitoring of the herd and enabling high-volume, high-speed collection of the raw material. Innovation in dairy farming technology blends perfectly with the artisanal nature of the processing, which we are committed to preserving to highlight the quality of our products.
So, after gaining some experience in the industry, you quickly made a name for yourself in this field. When did you open your first workshop/retail store, and what are your plans for the future?
Our first store, which included a workshop, opened in 2016, after four years of experience in the world of animal husbandry. As I mentioned, this was a completely new world for us; at first, there were only four of us running the entire operation, handling everything from animal care to managing the workshop and direct sales to customers. All the colleagues working alongside me have grown professionally alongside me and the business, learning together as the work became more demanding. Everyone’s enthusiasm and passion have always been strong, and this allowed us to quickly achieve significant results, both in terms of expanding our herd and thus milk production, and commercially. So we opened two more retail locations. We currently operate in the province of Perugia—not only here in Gualdo Tadino, but also in Gubbio and Perugia itself. We have now reached a turning point: our workshop can no longer handle such a heavy workload; the volume of raw milk is so high that we cannot process all the milk we produce. We’ve increased our workforce to 10 people, including myself, most of whom are under 35. They’re all hardworking and level-headed. We’ve grown together in this industry and are ready for a new challenge and a major transformation; from now on, our market will also change, so the facility we’re finishing will allow us to handle the continuous demand for products on an exponential scale.
What “Caseificio Trinei” products can we try, and why should we choose an artisanal product?
We would like to emphasize that what we currently produce fully adheres to the principles of the short supply chain. As we mentioned, the milk from our cows comes from a certified farm in the Umbrian hills. This is precisely why we chose the slogan: “From our cows to your table.” Consequently, our products are made with raw, unpasteurized milk, which preserves all its natural organoleptic properties, ensuring a product with a unique flavor. We produce many types of caciotta: cow’s milk, stracchinata, mixed, and spiced with various flavors. We also offer a variety of creamy yogurt and kefir. Even our stretched-curd cheeses are made with the same raw, unpasteurized milk and hand-stretched on a steel “tinozzo” using a wooden rod, precisely to highlight and preserve the traditional artisanal methods of the past. We produce mozzarella in its classic shape, as well as delightful knots, braids, and mozzarella for pizza, scamorza, and fresh cheeses such as ricotta, stracchino, and primo sale. The sheep’s milk used for the mixed-milk products comes from local Umbrian farms, depending on seasonal availability. To answer the question of why choose an artisanal product, I’ll tell you that, first and foremost, quality is the most obvious reason; as I mentioned, a product made with carefully selected raw materials and artisanal methods retains all its organoleptic properties. Equally important, however, is safety: we have the certainty of creating products with raw materials sourced exclusively from our own farm or from nearby areas. This is undoubtedly the advantage that sets us apart—monitoring the process from raw material to finished product.
Finally, what made you decide to join the Flea Universe?
I’ve always followed Matteo’s work, even though I didn’t know him personally at first. I’ve often recommended pairings with Birra Flea in my product bundles, which I encourage everyone to try. His ambitious idea to create this large production hub immediately caught my attention. As I mentioned, we had reached a point where processing all the milk we were milking was becoming difficult, and our facility had reached its limit—it simply couldn’t handle any more. So we felt the need to make that leap in quality, both from a production and organizational standpoint. I’ve always admired Matteo’s entrepreneurial ideas, just as I find it interesting to bring together artisan producers to create one big family. I’m a huge fan of all the local companies; I see potential in each of them to grow and make local artisanal production great.
If you’d like to try the products from “Caseificio Trinei,” here’s their contact information—try them for yourself and see if everything we’ve told you is true:
T1: 335 659 2472
T2: 334 283 8221
