Idiazabal Cheese by La Tienda

Idiazabal Cheese by La Tienda Review

Idiazabal Cheese by La Tienda Feature

• Perishable - Requires expedited shipping
• 1.1 Pounds
• Lightly smoked
• Classic aged cheese from the Basque country

Our Idiazábal cheese is from the original producer and is still produced by the same family in the heart of Basque Country. It is one of the most important cheeses of the Basque Country. A smoked unpasteurized sheep's milk cheese aged 8 months, it gets a deep but subtle flavor from being smoked with hawthorn and cherry wood. Traditionally Basque shepherds would keep their flocks high in the Pyrenees Mountains throughout the spring and summer. In the early autumn, right after the first snows, the shepherds would appear in the villages below carrying with them the cheeses they made from the ewe?s milk all summer long. In order to preserve the cheeses in the highlands they stored them by the chimneys of their mountain shelters, where they aged and naturally smoked. This D. O. controlled raw sheep?s milk cheese is hardwood smoked, making the outer hard rind ranging from orange to a nutty brown. The smoke gently permeates the pale beige interior with tiny holes throughout. You can easily slice this nutty buttery cheese with any handy knife. As it ages, the flavor becomes a little sharper, and can be grated. Idiazábal goes beautifully with fresh fruits, ham, salchichón and crusty bread. It can keep in your refrigerator for a month or more. Store in foil or waxed paper, so that your cheese can continue to breathe.