Queso de Acehúche

Appearance & taste

Queso de Acehúche is cylindrical, with largely flat faces and convex sides, at least 7 cm in diameter and at most half as high as it is wide; it weighs 200 to 1,200 g. The rind is naturally wax-yellow to dark ochre and slightly rough; a typical rind smear may form during ripening. The cheese is sold as it is or coated with paprika or oil. Cheeses tended with the “Sobao” technique have a smooth rind and rounded edges.

The paste is white to ivory, compact and without cracks, semi-hard and elastic, sometimes with a few small, roundish holes. In the mouth it is soft, slightly melting, fatty, sticky and moist, hardly crumbly or grainy. The smell is medium to strong, of goat’s milk and slightly pungent. The taste is only slightly salty and moderately sour, with little bitterness and sharpness, which become stronger in more mature cheeses, and is medium to long-lasting. The cheese has at least 45 % fat in dry matter and at least 50 % dry matter.

Production

The goats are kept extensively or semi-extensively and graze on the area’s natural vegetation, on cultivated fodder such as lucerne, vetch or oats, and on stubble fields. When needs are high, for example at kidding, or in times of drought, they receive supplementary feed. At most 1.8 livestock units are allowed per hectare, that is at most 12 goats.

Only raw, untreated and unstandardised goat’s milk with at least 7 % fat and protein combined is used. It is curdled with rennet; the curd is cut so that little whey drains off, which keeps the cheese moist and soft and makes the sides bulge slightly. The moulds are filled and pressed by hand, then the cheese is salted. During ripening the wheels are cleaned and turned by hand, and temperature and humidity are monitored constantly. In the “Sobao” technique, the cheesemakers wash the top, bottom and sides with wet hands as soon as the rind begins to form; this makes it smooth and even. Milk production and cheesemaking, including ripening, take place in the area. Halved or quartered cheeses each bear a certification mark.

Origin & history

The area covers around 396,000 ha in the central west of the province of Cáceres. It is a flat peneplain at an average altitude of 350 m, crossed by mountain ridges, where the Tagus, Alagón and Almonte meet. Besides steppe-like areas with rockrose, mastic, heather, broom, lavender and thyme, there is the “dehesa”, an oak savanna with holm oaks and herbs. Several municipalities lie in and around Monfragüe National Park.

According to the specification, because the area yields little, its inhabitants have always relied on livestock, above all goats, which are well adapted to the region. The cheesemakers acquire their skill through experience and by working with other experienced cheesemakers. The specification calls the “Sobao” technique an age-old practice of the local producers. Since 2004 the municipality of Acehúche has held the “Feria Ibérica del queso de cabra de Acehúche”, a fair only for cheese made from raw goat’s milk.