Meal deliveries are a great option for many people to try exclusive products. If you have a party or want to try new foods, order delicious cheeses in Spain. Cheeses are a great addition to beer and other drinks as a Tapas meal. In this article, we will look at the 7 best Spanish cheeses for Tapas. You may find the one you like most in the best Spanish cheese list and order it.
In Spain, there are generally more than a hundred cheese types. It is important to look through the main features when choosing them. Cheeses in Spain are mainly created from three kinds of milk—cow, sheep, and goat milk. There are 5 levels of aging. They include:
- Young cheese
- The one from 2 to 4 months
- The hard one from 6 months
- The hard one from 10 to 12 months
- The hard one from two years
Let’s look at the most popular products and their characteristics.
Idiazabal
In Article
Idiazabal is one of the most delicious cheeses in Spanish production. The yellow Spanish cheese country of origin is Basque. One special feature of the food in Spain is its ingredients. The product is made of unpasteurized sheep milk. The flavor is simple and light and does not contain excess smells. The taste of the Spanish hard cheese is similar to milk and nuts and is good for everyone. That is one of the cheeses from Spain that is great for red wine.
Idiazabal is an aged cured product that is healthy and safe for your body. In the cooking process, the producers use pressed paste and smoke the food. After the preparation, the cheese is cut into pieces and heated. This creates a lack of water in the food and condensates salt. After Idiazabal is aged, the producers smoke it using woods of different types.
In general, Idiazabal has a cylindrical shape. Another option is to buy one of a cone or octagonal shape. It has a yellow color and can include drawings on its surface.
Queso Manchego
The Queso Manchego soft Spanish cheese has a unique recipe that makes it popular. It is one of the most popular Spanish cheeses, which is indispensable for Tapas. The Queso Manchego Spanish cheese Tapas is produced from a sheep breed called Manchego sheep. The animal grows up in the center of Spain, in the La Macha area. Queso Manchego is a great addition to red wine. You can order a red wine bottle together with the product to make your party great.
Queso Manchego is one of the most popular sheep cheeses in the world. The product has a long history. Queso Manchego has a buttery structure and a white color. The taste is often soft and a little sour. At the same time, you may feel partly smoked or the taste and smell of sheep. The unique smell of Queso Manchego includes flowery and nutty aromas. It is a great match with honey and fruit. The easy Tapas recipes in Spain combine it with hamon, tomatoes, and crispy bread. It is great if used by small pieces that allow you to feel the taste to its full.
Cabrales
The Cabrales Spanish soft cheese has a tender flavor that fits people who do not like strong tastes. The Cabrales blue cheese from Spain is created from milk. The producers may use the milk from different animals, including cows, goats, and sheep. After the production, the Spanish blue cheese is stored in caves to create an unforgettable taste. The Spanish goat cheese is created in Spain’s mountains of Picos de Europa. So, it is a unique product interesting to try eating.
A special feature of Cabrales is its blue mold that adds a unique taste to the food. It is one of the best Spanish cheeses for Tapas originating from Asturias. Cabrales has 45% of fats and is made by hand. It mainly contains milk with salt and special ferment. The taste is spicy and combines sour, salty, and hot flavors. It also has a strong smell that will attract anyone’s attention. The Cabrales structure is cream and soft. It has a strong surface covered by blue mold. Cabrales is mainly created in a round shape and produced in spring or summer.
Queso Tetilla
Queso Tetilla is a great meal in Spanish for cheese Tapas. In the cooking process, the product is ripened for seven days at least. After that, the pieces are cleaned and cured. That is why the surface of Queso Tetilla is always smooth and soft. The food has a buttery and cream flavor with soft aromas. It does not have any bitter or spicy tastes because it is made of cow milk. When you eat Queso Tetilla, you may feel some walnut and vanilla tastes. It has an ivory color with a thin rind. It is a great option to eat Queso Tetilla as part of your dessert. You may also use it as a snack and combine it with honey, jam, or nuts.
Queso Tetilla is created in the Galicia community in Spain. It is one of the cheeses from Spain. Its makers use a special breed of cows to get a fantastic flavor. The cows are grown on mountain fields and are always healthy. The food includes salt and cow milk. It does not contain any coloring agents or preservatives. It means that Tetilla is completely healthy and secure for your body. The color is soft yellow with small holes. Tetilla is produced using storage in cold rooms for a period from 10 to 30 days.
Mahon
Machon is a great white Spanish cheese that can also be used for Tapas. The island of origin of the Spanish cheese Tapas is Menorca located near Ibiza. The cream cheese in Spanish Tapas is produced from cow milk. The Spanish white cheese is created with a soft salty taste. It reminds of Mediterranean culture. Machon is one of the best Spanish cheese list and popular in many countries. Machon is one of the hard Spanish cheese types with a hard buttery structure. It has a salty, spicy taste with a strong aroma. The color is ivory, and the rind has an orange color. Machon includes paprika, so the color depends on its amount in the product.
To prepare these types of Spanish cheese, it is necessary to put the products on a piece of cloth and tie it. Then it is pressed for several days to become more intense. There are 2 types of Machon. The first is a young Machon stored for 3 months on paper. The old one is stored for about 10 months. It has 55% of fats and is widespread in Spain. Machon is a great combination of pasta, potatoes, rice, and vegetables. It can also become a snack used together with olive butter.
Queso Ibores
Queso Ibores is a cured cheese made of goat milk. It is a soft buttery product that is great for Spanish Tapas board. It is cream and crispy food with a paprika smell. Quedo Ibores cheese makers use raw or pasteurized milk for its production. It is a high-quality product created on official farms from the three best breeds of goats. The milk does not contain any additions for fermenting. It is completely organic and healthy. In cooking, the curd is pressed and salted, and then it is stored in a salty solution for 24 hours. Then the surface is covered with smoked paprika and olive oil. That makes the rind orange.
Queso Ibores is a hard Tapas Barcelona cheese that contains 50% of fats. It has a soft, flexible structure that makes it easy to eat. Queso Ibores is mainly cream-colored with an orange rind. It has a soft taste with small faints of milk and spice. You can combine Ibores with salads. It is also perfect for Tapas when you drink red wine. So, if you are eating it, buy red wine.
Roncal
Roncal is a hard-pressed cheese from Spain. It is created using raw unpasteurized sheep milk. Roncal is made by hand in Navaro with 45% of fats. In the cooking process, the producers use milk from two sheep breeds—Rasa and Lacha. There are no extra ingredients that can be used in the preparation. All that is used is milk, ferment, and salt. After its preparation, Roncal is stored for a minimum of 4 months to get a unique flavor.
Roncal mainly has a cylindrical shape and weighs from 2 to 3 kg. The surface is covered with a hard rind with blue mold. It has a buttery structure with small holes. Roncal has a hot spicy taste and the aroma of herbage. It can be used like a combination with a dessert or white wine to make an exciting dinner.
So, consider the 7 best Spanish cheeses for Tapas and choose the one that fits you best.
FAQ
What Is Cheese in Spanish?
The Spanish word for “cheese” is “queso.”
What Does Tapas Mean?
Tapas is a meal served together with beer or wine in Spain. It is a snack that can include nuts or olives, together with individual meals. In any bar, there are unique Tapas meals.
What Spanish Cheese Is Like Brie?
Arzua Ulloa is similar to brie. It is made of cow milk in the Galicia area. It has a soft, buttery structure similar to cream.
