Aia cheese

At 56 km2, Aia is one of Gipuzkoa’s largest municipalities and it forms the gateway to the Pagoeta Nature Reserve. If you had to choose a colour to define it, it would have to be the green that fills its forests, groves and meadows. Its varied tones contrast with the pale sheep that graze there, many of which gaze into the deep blue of the sea. To those familiar with this idyllic setting, it is not surprising that the milk produced here is used to make many types of exceptional cheeses. There are around half a dozen producers and they use only artisan methods.

Cheese is the result of the miracle of fermentation. The writer Isabel Allende said that cheese is nothing more than milk and bacteria, and all the rest is illusion. She wasn’t wrong. It is as simple as that: pasteurised or unpasteurised sheep, goat or cow’s milk, to which you add rennet, the digestive enzyme taken from the stomach of lactating cows, and different types of bacteria (lactococcus, lactobacillus, streptococcus) that cause acidification. The lactose ferments and the sugar in the milk turns into lactic acid, which in turn causes the separation of solid curd and liquid whey. Aia has the advantage of exceptional raw materials. Like with all cow products, every animal is different: their quality and the quality of the derived products depends on their breed, genetics, nutrition, the water they drink, the grass they eat, the surroundings they live in and the care of the farmers.

Rich in protein, fat, calcium, selenium and vitamins, these cheeses are delicious served simply with fresh bread, or anchovies, and washed down with white wine, or accompanied by nuts and quince jam, a typical dessert in Basque cider houses.

Detail - Cheese expenrience

In addition to the famous sheep cheeses, many of which come under the Idiazabal Designation of Origin, Aia also produces many with cow and goat milk.

Where to buy cheese in Aia. Visit an artisanal cheese maker. Call and book in advance:

- Quesos Lokate 943 890 715
- Quesos Orortegi 943 830 804/656 773 368
- Quesos Ramón Lizeaga 652 643 844
- Quesos Agerre-Buru 943- 834 201/ 607 189 442
- Quesos Maintzelai 943- 835 617/619 742 539.