I have already spent a few posts extolling the virtues of high alpine cheeses, but the Swiss and French are not the only ones with an appreciation for high-altitude pastures. Today's piece hails from the proud Basque region of Spain, nestled into the Pyrenees. Another sheep's milk beauty, it was traditionally made high in the mountains in spring and summer, being brought down in mass when the first snowfall pushed the shepherds into the lower valleys. Idiazabal is sometimes smoked, though the degree is not specified by its name-controlled DO status, but it is always delicious.
Origin: Navarre, Spain
Milk: Sheep, unpasteurized
Rennet: Animal
Affinage: At least 2 months
Notes: The rind, which is edible but not pleasant, varies from a light orange, such as mine, to rich brown depending on how long it has been smoked. Mine had not been smoked very long, but then I'm not particularly fond of most smoked cheeses, so I'm not complaining. Something about the sticky, artificial and usually overpowering "smoked" flavor/aroma and the usually sub-par cheeses to which it's paired.
Thoughts: This cheese is refreshingly simple, but so thoroughly well made that it stands alone as a shining example of a few select characteristics. Although some aged versions of Idiazabal are used for grating, mine was young enough to cut nicely and still had some give and moisture to it. In the rich, fatty (remember sheep's milk is typically the fattiest than cow's or goat's milk) paste there are the usual nutty and grassy tones, but what characterizes this cheese is the raw milk. In this sense Idiazabal is tangy and a little bitter, generally sharper than you'd expect from such a young cheese, but very well proportioned. The hint of smoke was plenty for me, adding an additional dark layer to an already rich flavor. Bring this along on your next mountain stroll with some salted, cured meats or a fig jam and imagine you're bringing the herd down for the winter. Alternatively sit inside and watch a movie about shepherds and eat it, it'll probably still taste good.
Caution
The film The Good Shepherd doesn't actually have anything to do with sheep or cheese, just spies.
The film The Shepherd: Border Control has nothing to do with anything except Jean-Claude van Damme
Milk: Sheep, unpasteurized
Rennet: Animal
Affinage: At least 2 months
Notes: The rind, which is edible but not pleasant, varies from a light orange, such as mine, to rich brown depending on how long it has been smoked. Mine had not been smoked very long, but then I'm not particularly fond of most smoked cheeses, so I'm not complaining. Something about the sticky, artificial and usually overpowering "smoked" flavor/aroma and the usually sub-par cheeses to which it's paired.
Thoughts: This cheese is refreshingly simple, but so thoroughly well made that it stands alone as a shining example of a few select characteristics. Although some aged versions of Idiazabal are used for grating, mine was young enough to cut nicely and still had some give and moisture to it. In the rich, fatty (remember sheep's milk is typically the fattiest than cow's or goat's milk) paste there are the usual nutty and grassy tones, but what characterizes this cheese is the raw milk. In this sense Idiazabal is tangy and a little bitter, generally sharper than you'd expect from such a young cheese, but very well proportioned. The hint of smoke was plenty for me, adding an additional dark layer to an already rich flavor. Bring this along on your next mountain stroll with some salted, cured meats or a fig jam and imagine you're bringing the herd down for the winter. Alternatively sit inside and watch a movie about shepherds and eat it, it'll probably still taste good.
Caution
The film The Good Shepherd doesn't actually have anything to do with sheep or cheese, just spies.
The film The Shepherd: Border Control has nothing to do with anything except Jean-Claude van Damme
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