Queso Castellano

Appearance & taste

Queso Castellano is cylindrical, at most 25 cm in diameter, 15 cm high and weighing 3.8 kg. The rind is clearly formed and free of mould, pale yellow to brown, sometimes with the imprints of a mould or a cloth; it can be natural or treated with a permitted coating. The paste is firm and compact, white to light beige and very bright, with a few small, mostly round holes distributed irregularly. It is slightly sticky, elastic, crumbly and grainy. The cheese contains at least 45 % fat in dry matter.

The smell is moderately intense, above all milky, animal and of caramel, and more faintly of butter, fruit, plants and dried fruit. The specification describes the taste as strong, sour and salty, slightly sharp, with nuances of dried fruit and a fine fruity and vegetal aroma. In the mouth it is more acidic than similar cheeses, because the paste is somewhat moister and has a somewhat lower pH. With ripening, smell and taste become more intense. The cheese is sold as a whole wheel, in pieces, sliced or grated.

Production

The sheep are kept extensively, semi-extensively or, mostly, intensively. Where they graze, they eat above all the stubble of the fields. In winter, when feed is scarce and when kept indoors, they receive above all vetch, oats and lucerne as hay, dried or ensiled, plus cereal straw, protein crops and compound feed. At least 50 % of the feed comes from Castile and León.

Whole milk with at least 5.2 % fat and 4.6 % protein is used, raw or pasteurised. It is curdled with rennet, and the cheese is pressed firmly. Wheels up to 1.5 kg ripen for at least 30 days, larger ones for 60 days. Milk production, cheesemaking and ripening take place in Castile and León.

Origin & history

Castile and León has a continental Mediterranean climate, flat land in the interior and mountains at the edges, which favours varied vegetation. According to the specification, the region has always been particularly suited to farming and sheep breeding. In recent decades, with the rural exodus, sheep keeping has moved more indoors.

In the 16th and 17th centuries sheep breeding played an important role in the region. Because sheep’s milk spoiled easily and could hardly be transported far in the extreme weather, shepherds and sheep keepers made the cheese themselves, with rennet from the last lamb slaughtered. Those who produced a lot sold it at markets such as those of Villalón and Medina. A document of 14 December 1442 that set prices for goods traded in Santander already names “queso castellano”. At the beginning of the 20th century, centres of artisan cheese dairies emerged that collected and processed milk milked in the morning in the surrounding area. With industrialisation in the second half of the 20th century the cheese became known throughout Spain and was described in travel guides and cheese books.