The Azeitão Cheese was named after the village where it was born. It is produced at the foot of the Arrabida’s Mountain range, mainly in Palmela, Sesimbra and Azeitão.
The Azeitão Cheese is a small and cured gourmet artisanal cheese made from unpasteurized sheep's milk, that weights about 100 gr. or 200 gr. a piece (approximately 8 ounces).
Molded in cloth, Azeitao cheese has a rustic appearance. It looks like a flattened cylinder, without definite edges but with a yellow crust. The paste, yellow too, is buttered, creamy, soft, smooth; with a little bit or none grains and shuted texture, with a cutting part easily deformable. The older the cheese is, the harder and drier the paste will get and the more intense the flavor will be.
One of the best ways to eat it is to cut open the top and scoop its yellow cream onto slabs of nutty bread.
Azeitao’s Cheese Origin
According to ARCOLSA - Associação Regional dos Criadores de Ovinos Leiteiros da
Serra da Arrábida (Department Cheese of Azeitao) the origin and the secret of the Azeitao Cheese came from the region of the centre of the country two centuries ago, in 1830, by Gaspar Henriques de Paiva, who came to Azeitão to work in farming. He brought some milk sheep, and maybe because he missed his home so badly, every year, he asked for a cheese-maker to make its cheese, in a way that the milk from his flock could produce the famous cheese of Serra da Estrela, without supposing that he was in the origin of one of most appreciated sheep’s national cheese: the Azeitão’s Cheese.
Way of Production
The Azeitão’s Cheese is produced from the raw sheep’s milk. The producers only add thistle and salt. Its own characteristics very particular and appreciated are intimately connected to the grazing flora of Arrabida Mountain and to the utilization of a variety of flower of thistle, (cardoon, cardo, Cynara Cardunculus L.), spontaneous in the south of the country to the milk’s clotting.
The cure has the duration of 20 days at least. During this time every day cheeses are turned, cleaned and washed, every time its needed, to keep the crust clean and smooth.
Flavor and taste are extraordinary special, clear and unmistakable, being quite closed to the special characteristics from the area of production. , the flavor and taste are definite too as a mixture of acid and salty, and in a very low way of bitter and hot tasty, what makes this flavor extraordinary unique.
Control and Denomination
Since April 2003, the ARCOLSA assumed the right of award of the use of Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status (Denominação de Origem Protegida - DOP) “Cheese of Azeitão”.
The processes of Control and Certification officially arrived in 1994, developed at the beginning for ARCOLSA, but from November of 2001 to December of 2004 have been developed by Origins of Land. Since January of 2005 this Control and Certification process its realized by SATIVA, Rural Development, Lda., a Private Organism of Control and Certification of Products from the Rural Business.
Since then serious control rules were developed regarding the hygienic – sanitary conditions of treatment and milking of the milk producers and the control of the flock’s sanitary status.
The control of the cheese places it’s about checking the hygienic – sanitary conditions and technologies too of manufacture, being realized some physical, chemical and microbiologist regular analysis to milk and cheese.
The quality control of the final product and the exams of checking the maintenance and guarantees the perpetuation of the characteristics of Azeitão’s Cheese, use to have place doing some regular tests to the cheese, which one is submitted in a control panel to the assessment of the demanded characteristics by some highly qualified group and completely autonomous.
For more information on PDO visit http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/qual/en/156_en.htm
More on European Cheeses with Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) / Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/qual/en/pgi_01en.htm
Azeitao Cheese Producers
Casa de Calhariz - The cheese production of Casa de Calhariz is one of the most well known of the region, giving the name and fame to Azeitão’s Cheese. Situated at Quinta do Calhariz, in Arrábida’s Mountain, it’s the only producer of Azeitão’s Cheese in the region of Sesimbra. It’s activity was interrupted in 1990, being ensured again in 2005, when it ended the construction of one cheese factory all brand new, which follows all the hygienic and environmental rules, although it keeps the typical manufacture of Azeitão’s Cheese production. www.casadecalhariz.pt
Fernando de Oliveira Simões - Azeitão’s Cheese producer since 1992, learned how to made cheese with the cheese-maker Mário Padanha, known as well as “Ti Mário”, being at this time cheese-maker at Camarate’s Farm (Quinta do Camarate). A family that started having some sheep but lafter decided to produce cheese. Nowadays he his the biggest producer of Azeitão’s Cheese of 250 gr. Being this a family business it has a massive support in the two sons of Fernando Oliveira Simões and their wives, who were unemployed. Tel. +351 212 881 363
Fernando Vinha Monteiro - The connection of this family to the manufacture of cheese and sheep breeding comes for so long, that the years are probably lost in time, always having a manufacture and family modeling of production. Fernando started his production in 1982 and evolutes in to a process of manufacture, although never loosing the family support. Since then, he has conquered the consumers and the market. This is a house that works only with sheep milk, producing most of the time fresh cheese, of course Cheese of Azeitão. Tel. +351 212 871 272
Francisco Firmino Antunes - He started his production of cheese in 1979, and in the Christmas of that year started the production of butter cheeses. This all happened because the woman that used to sell cheeses didn’t arrive to work, and the pour man had to do those butter cheese, being all of them delicious. The teaching became from the mother, herself taught by her father when she used to go with him to the houses producers of Cheese of Azeitão. In January 1980 her husband brought a new flock, started making fresh cheeses and buttered cheeses everyday, helped by Manuel Sota, a cheese-maker. In 1988 made the cheese factory and started to produce the Azeitão’s Cheese of 100 gr. and 250 gr. as well, being those sold in Lisbon. The process of Certification started in April 1996, never failed. Tel. +351 212 871 123
Flor de Cardo - Created in 2003, Flor de Cardo is a young company dedicated to the production and sale of this traditional cheese. Based in a old cheese-factory from the region of production of Azeitão’s Cheese DOP, Flor de Cardo creates products from the range Divinus, as a result of a defined strategy which has as first objective the consolidation of quality and typical regional modernizing at the same time as the techniques of production. About the legacy of other generations Flor do Cardo uses the essential of traditional technology with modern equipments, showing at the same time some secrets that the “art of making cheese” left us as a legacy. Tel. +351 265 538 740
Ambiqueijo – Tel. +351 212 881 180
Quinta de Camarate – Since 1914 this handmade cheese factory is a Soares Fanco family tradition, descendent of the father of the Azeitão’s Cheese, Frederico Franco de Paiva.
Fernando Porto Soares Franco, dedicated all his life to the study and history of the Cheese of Azeitão, being important in its valor at the beginning of the process of the recognition of the Origin Denomination. Tel. +351 212 197 500
Quinta do Viso Grande - The estate from Viso Grande appeared when the family of Pedro Fontes tried to get back some property from the centre of Arrábida Park (Parque da Arrábida). Pedro Fontes started with a flock of sheep, helped by his wife. This care for Cheese of Azeitão appeared during those nights around the fire at the cheese factory of Quinta Velha, among friends, where it used to be the traditional place of making cheese.
The knowledge of making Cheese of Azeitão was transmitted by some experiment producers. Tel. +351 917 225 452
Victor Fernandes - Producer of Azeitão’s Cheese since 1988, Victor started to learn how to make cheese with the famous cheese-maker Alfredo, known as the “Migalheiro” of Quinta Velha. He started the production using only milk from his flock. Today he works with other milk’s sheep from the region, which gives him the possibility of production during all the year. This is a family business with a huge support on the producer and wife. Victor Fernandes produces Cheese Azeitão of 250gr. and 100 gr. Tel. +351 210 807 796
Tips on how to serve and taste the Azeitao Cheese
This cheese can be served as an original entrance, in some picnic with friends, or before the desert, as an excellent ending to some delicious menu. It should be served at the ambience temperature. So if previously refrigerated, you should leave it at room temperature two hours before serving, during winter time or thirty minutes during summer.
Put the cheese in a proper base. Then the cut must be made in order at half, in a way that you can enjoy this butter paste slowly deforming. After doing that, divide it in small parts and serve it.
Serve with some good and nice red wine from this region and bread home made, or some toasts without flavour. If is served before the dessert, you can enjoy it with some good and tasty wine. And enjoy it.
Other milk products from the Azeitao Region
Azeitao’s Sheep Butter
Made by mixtures of sheep’s milk, this butter’s color is like a faint yellow, and it owns a special characteristic flavor from the qualities of milk from this region and from the way of production. This butter is a sub product of the manufacture of Azeitão’s Cheese.
History
Because of the production process of the Azeitão’s Cheese, like the treatment and cure of milk, the use of mixtures from the region, the butter production as always been made by the grease of the milk’s skin. Some historians note that the originality of this procedure in opposite to other cheese regions, as well as the special and unique characteristics of the product. Trough the history of production of Azeitão’s cheese sheep’s butter was always a reference. Actually there is a specific place for the concentration of the skin’s milk used in the butter production.
The production of sheep’s butter only happens in the geographic area of production of Azeitão’s Cheese - DOP.
Where to buy Portuguese Cheeses in the United States including the Azeitao Cheese:
Artisanal Premium Cheese http://www.artisanalcheese.com/prodinfo.asp?number=PC-10032
Cheese Line
http://www.cheeseline.com/gourmet-cheese/azeitao-cheese-100490.aspx
(note that in order to comply with US FDA regulation for export to the USA the maturation of this cheese has been extended to over 60 days).
You can also read more about this great cheese at http://www.globalrhythm.net/Food/InPortugalJustSayCheeseOrQueijo.cfm
