Cheese of the week: Manchego

01/23/2012

If you haven’t yet made friends with Spain’s most popular sheep’s milk cheese, we think it’s time you did.  Thus, we’d like to introduce you to Manchego.  Made specifically in the La Mancha region of Spain from Manchega sheep’s milk, it is valued for its slightly piquant, nutty, buttery, and distinctly sheep-y flavor and is easily identified by the characteristic zigzag pattern on its exterior (nowadays accomplished using plastic molds which mimic the traditional esparto grass molds used centuries ago.)  This week, we’re highlighting the pasteurized version which has been aged six months (making this a semi-cured, or “curado”, style) because we think it’s a great option for those who are looking to get into the sheep milk cheese world.  It is a firm cheese which slices up nicely and makes for a great meal with some rustic bread, fruit, and a glass of red wine with enough body to match the full flavor of the cheese.