Idiazabal Etxegarai Wheel

Idiazabal is a pressed cheese made from unpasteurized sheep milk, usually from Latxa and Carranzana sheep in the Basque Country and Navarre. It has a somewhat Smokey flavor, but is usually un-smoked. The cheese is handmade and covered in a hard, dark brown, inedible rind. It is aged for a few months and develops a nutty, buttery flavor, eaten fresh, often with quince jam. If aged longer, it becomes firm, dry and sharp and can be used for grating. Laxta and Carranza sheep bask on the hillsides of Basque, and the rich, buttery raw milk they produce helps to create the region's favorite Spanish D.O. (Denominacion de Origen) cheese - Idiazabal. Similar to its Spanish cousin, Manchego, this cheese is lightly pressed and gently smoked, a nod to its humble history of drying by the fireplace. The particular sheep breeds give exceptionally rich, fatty milk, resulting in a buttery mouth-feel and an intriguing gamy character. Best enjoyed hearthside with a mug of hard cider or a fruity Spanish red.