Queso de Murcia

Appearance & taste

Both types are cylindrical and contain at least 45 % fat and 32 % protein in dry matter. “Queso de Murcia fresco” is a lightly pressed, unripened cheese of 250 g to 3 kg, at most 20 cm wide and 12 cm high. It has no rind; the sides bear a pattern like woven esparto, and the top and bottom are smooth or carry a flower pattern. Paste and surface are glossy white, the paste soft to firm, elastic, tender and moist and practically without holes. It smells fresh of milk and slightly of goat and tastes mild, slightly salty and sweet, of fresh milk and cream, with an aftertaste of goat.

“Queso de Murcia curado” is pressed but uncooked and weighs 250 g to 2.6 kg, with a diameter of at most 19 cm and a height of at most 10 cm. Its rind is smooth, without a woven pattern, dry and firm, wax-yellow to ochre depending on ripening time; mould may appear. The paste is firm and compact, with holes of different sizes unevenly distributed, and becomes brittle and chalky when well ripened. On the nose it shows butter, goat, hay and nuts, and when riper also roasted notes and caramel. The taste is lasting, slightly acidic, slightly sweet and mildly salty, slightly sharp in riper cheese.

The cheese may be sold in portions, slices or grated. Each cheese bears a numbered label from the control body with the logo of the designation.

Production

The milk comes from Murcia goats on farms in the area and must contain at least 4.7 % fat and 3.4 % protein. The goats graze seasonally on the natural vegetation, which is dominated by bushes and shrubs; these have little nutritional value but, according to the specification, influence the sensory character of the cheese. In addition they regularly receive by-products of the region: cereal straw, vine leaves, olive branches, almond hulls, citrus pulp, residues from vegetable growing and the canning industry, as well as seeds and lucerne hay.

Milk production, cheesemaking and ripening take place in the area. Portioning, slicing, grating and packing may also take place outside the area, in businesses that comply with the procedural protocol.

Origin & history

The area covers the whole province of Murcia. According to the specification, the region lies in the driest area of Europe; little rain and high temperatures produce a Mediterranean vegetation of shrubs and bushes, with grazing land full of esparto grass, labiates and rockroses that is used extensively. The Murcia goat is fertile all year round, so the quantity of milk varies less over the year; according to the specification, its milk is known for its high fat and protein content, which gives the cheese its creamy, tender texture.

A book on the Murcia goat from 1922 reports that the cheese eaten in Jumilla and Yecla was also made there and sold as far as Alicante. The milk was coagulated with kid rennet, the curd put into small moulds and placed in brine; the cheese was eaten fresh or ripened. In the mountains, goat keepers made almost only fresh cheese and curdled the boiled milk with vinegar or lemon. A cheese handbook from 1988 records that all goat keepers in the region traditionally made fresh goat’s cheese for the family and for local sale.