and registry documents dating back to the 13th century show that in the alpine valley of Tyrol, particularly in the Stelvio area, annual rent for a single family grazing ranch, amounted to 300 whole wheels of cheese.
Similar arrangements made in the areas around the village of Stelvio, were so common for so long, that the saying "300 whole cheeses" in local dialect came to mean the minimum amount of pasture and cows needed by a family to survive.
The making of this wholesome alpine cheese in the valley has continued uninterrupted for centuries. But it was only in 1914 that this classic regional specialty became widely known as Stelvio, or Stilfser, as was recorded for the first time in the archives of the Stilf Dairy Farm.
During the first half of the 20th Century, Stelvio cheese was still considered a staple of a poor peasant's diet and it was barely known outside its production area. Then dairy farmers began to share their knowledge and experience, forming cooperatives for production and marketing of this cheese. National and international trade expanded vastly and Stelvio took a much wider role in the economic and social life of the entire valley.
