Butter Made by Memory | Del Bocia

Before starting Del Bocia, Alberto Borghi had never made butter in his life.

He did not inherit a dairy, a production facility or a secret family recipe. What he carried from northern Italy to Melbourne was a memory.

Growing up in Veneto, Alberto’s father would drive the family for hours through the Dolomites in search of exceptional mountain butter. These journeys taught him that food was not simply consumed. It was discovered, questioned and understood.

“My father would drive us for hours through these incredible mountains just to find the best butter,” Alberto says. “I had never made butter in my life. I simply remembered how that butter tasted, and I wanted to find that feeling again.”

Even the name carries that history. Bocia is a Venetian word meaning the boy or the kid. It was the nickname given to Alberto’s father, and Del Bocia is a tribute to him and the curiosity he passed down.

In Melbourne, Alberto began teaching himself to make the butter he remembered. Using Gippsland cream and methods inspired by the Dolomites, the cream is slowly churned at a low temperature, washed with ice cold water and gently worked.

There are faster ways to make butter. Del Bocia deliberately chose not to use them.

The brand is now represented across every Australian state and has recently reached Singapore. Its range includes truffle, native Australian herbs, anchovy, Parmigiano and pepperberry, crispy chilli and Australia’s first buffalo butter.

Despite that growth, the purpose remains simple: make butter exceptionally well and return it to its rightful place at the table.