Antani

De'Magi is the affineur house of Andrea Magi, working out of Castiglion Fiorentino in the Tuscan province of Arezzo. Andrea isn't a farmer-cheesemaker in the classical sense — he's an affinatore, a maturing specialist who sources young wheels from trusted producers across Italy and finishes them in his own cellars, where curing rooms, herb baths, wine soaks, and timed flips turn good cheese into something with his name on it.

The range tells the story. Briacacio a Vino gets buried in panbriacone curd and raisin must until the rind blushes purple. Buhaiolo is a Tuscan pecorino drilled and dressed with wild fennel pollen and flower. Avarizia is a low-salt washed rind of cow and buffalo milk, sticky and pungent. Antani is a cow's milk wheel cave-aged at least six months until it picks up butter, nuts, and flowers. La Dama Sagrada is the goat's milk wheel; La Regina the Queen pulls in cow and sheep robiola from the Langhe. The Gorgonzola Dolce DOP and the Taleggio PDO Green Label are bought-in classics finished under Andrea's care — his Taleggio is matured longer than the standard release, which is why it carries the green label and shows up on Dom's counter at all.

This is provenance-by-curation: Andrea picks his producers, then earns the cheese the rest of the way in the cellar. Dom calls him a dear friend, and the green-label Taleggio is on the counter specifically because it comes from Andrea's caves. Right in the sweet spot for a Tuscan affineur — wine, pollen, washed rinds, and a maturing room that does the heavy lifting.