A sampling of Spain’s most famous cheeses — Cabrales, Manchego, Torta del Casar and Zamorano.
PHOTOS BY LESLIE LEVY
Man-made state-of-the-art big-city cheese caves conveniently bring some of the best of these dairy products to the masses. However, there’s nothing like walking into a bona fide nature-made cave filled with all the earthly elements to nurture a cheese to its full flavor.
You can do this in the Principality of Asturias, in northwest Spain, where limestone caves are under the peaks of the Picos de Europa mountain range. Here, at an elevation of one-half to three-fourths of a mile above sea level, cheeses are carefully placed on wooden shelves, regularly turned and cleaned, and exposed to the cool (50 degrees) moist (90%) environment for two to five months, when penicillium molds that produce the blue-green veins in Cabrales blue thrive.
Guided tours of the caves where Cabrales Cueva del Molin cheese is made are an hour long and offer an insider’s look at the artisanal production process that’s happened here since the caves opened in 1913. This blue is among the most awarded worldwide, earning seven World Cheese Award medals.
The tour ends with a cheese tasting paired with El Gaitero ciders, traditionally produced with classic Asturian apple varieties. Cabrales is only one of Spain’s famous cheeses available at restaurants and retailers in the U.S. Others include Manchego, Torta del Casar and Zamorano.
AN AGES-OLD INDUSTRY
The history of Spanish cheese dates to at least the Bronze Age, from 1800 to 1500 B.C. Archaeologists unearthed evidence of ancient cheesemakers in the La Mancha region who pressed sheep milk curds into hand-woven esparto grass baskets.
This marked the start of Spain’s famous Manchego cheese, which is easy to spot by its basket weave rind, ranging from tan to dark brown. Manchego’s global fame lies in its multiple references by Miguel Cervantes in his 17th-century novel, Don Quixote de la Mancha.
By 200 B.C. Romans ruled this peninsula and spread more sophisticated cheese-making techniques throughout the country’s many climates and contours. Later, monks meticulously recorded these methods, preserving them for centuries.
Today, many time-honored criteria, from production location, traditional techniques, and milk source to how and where cheese is aged, serve as the standards by which specific varieties of Spanish cheeses receive a D.O.P. (Protected Designation of Origin) designation. More than 100 types of Spanish cheese are produced today, with 26 having a D.O.P. classification. D.O.P. cheeses include Manchego, Torta del Casar, Zamorano and Cabrales Blue.
MANCHEGO: SPAIN’S MOST FAMOUS CHEESE
Manchego is made from the milk of Manchega sheep, which is only bred in the La Mancha region of Spain, south of Madrid and east of Toledo.
In Toledo, next to the cathedral, the Manchego Cheese Museum is open to visitors. Inside is a museum with historical exhibitions and old cheesemaking tools and a tasting room to sample cheeses from different curing processes and cheese factories, along with La Mancha red and white wines.
Choices of Manchego cheese include Fresco (aged for a minimum of two weeks and rarely found in the U.S. due to the length of transit times), Semi-Curado (aged three to four months), Curado (aged four to six months), and Viejo (aged one to two years). In the U.S., Manchego is marketed by age in months or years. Generally, the younger the cheese, the milder and creamier it is, while the longest-aged is sharp-flavored and crumbly.
In Spain, enjoy Manchego served at the Michelin Bib Gourmand-rated Restaurant Las Musas while looking out at the legendary giant windmills described in Don Quixote. Start with a chopped tomato, Manchego, and a drizzle of oil bruschetta-like appetizer and finish with Manchego Cheesecake for dessert.
At home, serve Manchego on a cheeseboard with grapes, figs, pears, toasted almonds or walnuts, a drizzle of honey, and crackers. Or, stir small pieces or crumbles into warm pasta at the end of cooking for a rich, creamy flavor. Slice the cheese into small wedges and pair it with slices of cured jamon Iberico on crusty bread tapas-style. Or, spread on a toasted baguette and top with olive oil and fresh chopped herbs, like rosemary and thyme.
TORTA DEL CASAR: A LUCKY MISTAKE
Legend tells of a Middle Ages-era shepherd in Spain’s center-south province of Caceres whose cheese didn’t turn out right in the country’s Extremadura region. It happened sometimes. The region’s climatic conditions of long hot summers, short mild winters, and random rains, plus using a vegetable rennet extracted from the wild thistle flower (Cynara Cardunculus), would occasionally result in very soft cheese.
It was so soft that when the rind was not fully formed, it sank under its own weight. This unusual shape looked more like a flour “torta” than a traditional cheese. The shepherd’s friends tried it, liked it, and Torta del Casar was born.
Given that this natural “mistake” happened almost exclusively in the land surrounding the town of Casar de Cáceres, this cheese earned its centuries-old name, Torta del Casar.
This cheese is made with raw milk from herds of Merino and Entrefino sheep and is noteworthy for its thin, semi-hard rind outside and pudding-like texture inside. In fact, at certain stages of ripening, the cheese must be bandaged to prevent its contents from spilling out through the cracks in the soft rind.
All D.O.P. Torta del Casar cheeses come with an exclusive numbered red and gold control label to guarantee origin and tradition. This cheese typically comes in three sizes — ½- to 1-pound, 1 to 1.75 pounds, and 1.75 to 2.5 pounds. Regardless of size, all Torta de Casar is usually matured for 60 to 90 days.
Visit the Atrio Restaurant in the heart of Caceres to sample Chef Toño Pérez’s creamed Torta del Casar dessert. Perez, whose eatery earned its third Michelin star in 2024, complements the richness of the cheese with quince gel, matcha tea-flavored sponge, and an olive oil biscuit.
On your own, spread Torta del Casar on bread or crackers. Melt it into a smooth sauce for pasta, make a Wild Mushroom Risotto, or use it as a topping for roasted potatoes. Add it to puff pastries. Or, serve on a charcuterie board with accompaniments like nuts, dried fruits, honey, jam, quince paste, chutney, pickles, onions, apples, grapes or pears. To drink, pair it with a crisp sauvignon blanc.
FRESH FROM ZAMORA: ZAMORANO
Zamorano is one of the D.O.P. cheeses produced at Quesos El Pastor, a half-century-old plus family dairy turned quality cheese producer north of Zamora, in the heart of Castile and Leon. Milk of Churra and Castellano sheep, native to the Zamora region, makes this firm texture, buttery flavored cheese with a hint of piquancy aged three to 12 months.
Zamorano’s roots date to the Copper Age, 3500-2300 B.C. The Museum of Zamora has archeological remains of perforated baked clay vessels used to drain the cheese. Enjoy Zamorano as a table cheese, or with bread topped with caramelized onions, with butter and cream, with extra virgin olive oil and vinegar, or with a glass of Tempranillo.
The region where Quesos El Pastor is based is ideal for cheese production. Eighty percent of Spain’s sheep’s milk comes from animals on the surrounding rich grazing lands, moderated by its Mediterranean climate.
The two other most popular cheeses produced here are Castellano and Iberico.
CABRALES: SPAIN’S KING OF THE BLUES
With its signature bite, strong aroma, and slightly salty taste, this blue cheese is often called Asturias ambassador par excellence to the rest of the food world.
It’s a Guinness World Record setter, too. In August 2023, a nearly 4.8-pound wheel of Cabrales blue, made in Spain’s Queseria los Puertos, sold for over $32,000 to Ivan Suarez, owner of the El Llagar de Colloto restaurant in Asturias. The sale happened at the annual Cabrales Cheese Competition, held the last Sunday in August each year, in Las Arenas.
In the U.S., it’s possible to purchase a Cabrales blue for $30 to $45 per pound.
Serve as a tapas-style appetizer on a sliced baguette, bread or crackers, or dessert cheese, accompanied by fresh or dried fruits. Fresh pears stuffed with aged blue and drizzled with a walnut honey glaze are an enticing eye-catcher for entertaining. Cabrales also combines with other ingredients in sauces or as an embellishment on pizza or quiche.
Either way, the love-at-first-bite flavor will remind cheese connoisseurs of the mountain caves where Cabrales was born.
