In 1939, Paolo Sartori brought his Italian heritage to Wisconsin and founded Sartori Cheese. It was this passion for cheesemaking that sparked a successful family-run business that has thrived for generations.
“When my great grandfather was looking at founding [Sartori], he looked all over the midwest and ended up settling in Wisconsin. The work ethic of the team, the rich history of agriculture, and the climate made it an ideal place for dairy farming.”
While each generation of Sartori family leadership has had their own style, they’ve always been united under one mission: to make the best cheese in the world.
Generational Leadership
1939 - 1957
Paolo: an Italian immigrant from humble beginnings with an entrepreneurial spirit. He learned the business of cheesemaking before spending his life savings to co-found our company.
Generational Leadership
1957 - 1986
Joe: creative, a cheesemaker at heart, who perfected our classic Italian cheese recipes.
Generational Leadership
1986 - 2020
Jim: a visionary who guided Sartori to focus our cheese-making expertise on world-renowned American Originals like BellaVitano® & MontAmoré®.
Generational Leadership
2020 - Present
Bert: naturally curious and innovative, he’s focused on sharing our award-winning cheese with people across the globe while investing in our team, our creameries & our community and preparing the business for the 5th generation.
Since 1939, Sartori’s® success has largely been derived from the creativity and ingenuity of the team. Sartori's® heritage has helped shape the company's core values: Family, Commitment, Authenticity, Ingenuity, Integrity and Humility.
Legacy of Ingenuity
1942 & 1946
Sartori invents and patents ‘cheese curd mixing and stretching’ machines that provided consumers across the globe with consistent higher quality Italian cheese.
Legacy of Ingenuity
1982
While Sartori® produced great parmesan from the start, in 1982 the production of world-class parmesan and other hard Italian varieties of cheese, became the centerpiece of Sartori’s® business. Today, Sartori® is proud to be consistently recognized for world award-winning parmesan cheese.
Legacy of Ingenuity
2008
Sartori introduces BellaVitano® cheese. Shortly after, BellaVitano® wins ‘Best New Cheese in the World’ at the 2008 European-hosted World Cheese Awards.
Legacy of Ingenuity
2010
Sartori starts experimenting with soaking and hand-finishing the BellaVitano® in different flavors, with the goal of enhancing the wonderful attributes of the Sartori Original.
Legacy of Ingenuity
2017
BellaVitano® wins “Grand Champion” at the U.S. Championship Cheese contest. The best item out of over 2,000 American made cheese products.
Legacy of Ingenuity
2020
Sartori introduces Italian-inspired artisan cheddars using proprietary starters and cultures, and more than 80 years of award-winning heritage.
We’re proud to be located in Wisconsin, with its rich history in agriculture and dairy farming. Sartori was founded in the historical East Main Caves (pictured right), a special family landmark. We love the historical beauty of these caves, and we continue to hand-finish our BellaVitano® there every day.
Sartori Crest
The Crest
Our family crest nods to the people, places, and experiences that define us.
Sartori Crest
The Ship
The Finlandia was the steamer that carried our founder, Paolo Sartori, to America. Later, he would achieve his own American Dream when he founded Sartori in 1939.
Sartori Crest
The Cows
The cows are an acknowledgement of our farm-to-fork ethos and the special relationships we have with our family farmers, many of whom have supplied us milk for several generations.
Sartori Crest
Wisconsin
The state of Wisconsin symbolizes our home, and the source of the finest cheese anywhere; it’s the place that shaped our family and our company.
Sartori Crest
The Crown
Our crest is topped by a crown. The four stars represent the four generations of the Sartori family dedicated to making the best cheese in the world, starting with Paolo Sartori in 1939. We look forward to adding a 5th star soon.
As a generational family business, we know we have something special here. We love the team we’ve built, and we’re focused on continuing to cultivate our Sartori family so we can make new cheeses we’re excited to share with the world.
