Haha, youngster.
This is a cheese that was put into production in 1997 by a cheese conglomerate in France, the same folks responsible for the Sorrento and President brands of cheese. Big cheese, man. Big cheese.
Nevertheless they manage to put out some respectable products, one of which being today's P'tit Basque. Supposedly made with traditional methods, questionable given its factory production and scale, it is a sheep's milk cheese that also hails from the Pyrenees of France's southwestern border and also has its own merits despite lacking the approval of the high council of cheese elders.
Origin: The Western Pyrenees, France
Milk: Sheep, pasteurized
Rennet: Animal
Affinage: ~70 days
Notes: Comes in relatively small little cylinders, not unlike Manchego to the West... hmmmmm.
Thoughts: Fully of oily, sheepy goodness, this cheese is actually very reminiscent of the Spanish Manchego. Relatively light on the palate but not sacrificing in flavor, the mild sweetness of this cheese comes through nicely. Perfectly measured creaminess makes for a good example of how sheep's milk cheeses can be both mild and accessible while still tasting good. Tastes a little... well a little cheap if you will, but then no one would claim to have P'tit Basque challenge the Spanish centerpiece for the crown anyways. One can do much worse, and hey it's French (oooooh, ahhhhhhh).
Caution
This blogger is going to a cheese festival tomorrow so..... yeah. If I'm never heard from again don't both sending search parties out, I'll have thoroughly lost myself amongst the aisles of Käse.
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