Pecorino Sardo is a relatively recent product from a region where the art of cheese-making dates back many centuries. This cheese obtained its certification of designated origin from the Italian state in 1991 and the more prestigious European DOP (Protected Designation of Origin) certification in July 1996. Pecorino Sardo is a traditional cylindrical, semi-cooked hard cheese that is sold either as a "sweet" or a "ripened" product. It is soft if sweet, hard if ripened. 
       The area in which both versions are made (and where the hard version is ripened to maturity) encompasses the entire administrative region of Sardinia. The Consortium of Guarantee has set up a distinctive labelling system for Pecorino Sardo. The label contains an emblem representing the producer plus the symbols of the consortium. 
       The trademark and name of the individual producer is set in the central section of the label, while the outer ring is reserved for the Pecorino Sardo DOP emblem. The label also bears one of two separate marks of guarantee, depending on whether the cheese is young and soft, or ripened and hard. A consortium emblem in which blue is the dominant colour indicates ripened hard cheese; a label in which green is dominant indicates the "sweet" and soft variety. The Consortium of Guarantee thus

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