Ossau-Iraty is an
Occitan Occitan may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain.
* Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France.
* Occitan language
Occitan (; o ...
-
Basque
Basque may refer to:
* Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France
* Basque language, their language
Places
* Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France
* Basque Country (autonomous co ...
cheese
Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During production, ...
made from
sheep milk
Sheep's milk (or ewes' milk) is the milk of domestic sheep. It is commonly used to make cultured dairy products such as cheese. Some of the most popular sheep cheeses include feta (Greece), ricotta (Italy), and Roquefort (France).
Sheep breeds
S ...
.
Origin
Ossau-Iraty or Esquirrou is produced in south-western France, in the
Northern Basque Country and in
Béarn
The Béarn (; ; oc, Bearn or ''Biarn''; eu, Bearno or ''Biarno''; or ''Bearnia'') is one of the traditional provinces of France, located in the Pyrenees mountains and in the plain at their feet, in southwest France. Along with the three Bas ...
. Its name reflects its geographical location, the
Ossau Valley
The Ossau Valley (French: ''Vallée d'Ossau''; Gascon: ''Aussau'' / ''la vath d'Aussau'') is a valley of the French Pyrénées, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques ''département''.
Administration
18 communes belong to the Valley: Arudy, Aste-Béo ...
in Béarn and the
Irati Forest in the
Basque Country.
AOC status
It has been recognized as an
appellation d'origine contrôlée
An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication primarily used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown, although other types of food often have appellations as well. Restrictions other than geographical boun ...
(AOC) product since 1980. It is one of three sheep's milk cheeses granted AOC status in France (the others are
Roquefort
Roquefort is a sheep milk cheese from Southern France, and is one of the world's best known blue cheeses. Though similar cheeses are produced elsewhere, EU law dictates that only those cheeses aged in the natural Combalou caves of Roquefort-sur ...
and
Brocciu
Brocciu is a Corsican cheese produced from a combination of milk and whey, giving it some of the characteristics of whey cheese. It is produced from ewe's milk. It is notable as a substitute for lactose-rich Italian Ricotta, as brocciu contain ...
). It is of ancient origin, traditionally made by the shepherds in the region.
Production
Production techniques are very much in the essence of old world methods whereby the sheep still graze mountain pastures. The milk must come from the breeds
Basco-béarnaise,
Red-face Manech, or
Black-face Manech. This is an uncooked cheese made through pressing. When offered as a farm-produced cheese (known as ''fromage fermier'', ''fromage de ferme'' or ''produit fermier'') the AOC regulations stipulate that only raw, unpasteurized milk be used.
* 3,067 tonnes (in 2003)
* 60 producers (in 2003)
* 8 manufacturers: private industries and cooperatives (in 1998)
* 2,045 milk producers (in 1998)
Description
According to the official description, the cheese crust is yellow-orange to gray, and the body color ranges from white to cream depending on how it has been matured. It is smooth, creamy and firm, and may have some small
eyes
Eyes are organs of the visual system. They provide living organisms with vision, the ability to receive and process visual detail, as well as enabling several photo response functions that are independent of vision. Eyes detect light and conve ...
(openings).
See also
*
Idiazabal cheese
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 h ...
*
List of sheep milk cheeses
This is a list of sheep milk cheeses. Sheep milk cheese is prepared from sheep milk (or ewe's milk), the milk of domestic sheep. The milk is commonly used to make cultured dairy products, such as cheese.
Sheep milk cheeses
* Abbaye de ...
References
{{French cheeses
French cheeses
Sheep's-milk cheeses
French products with protected designation of origin
Cheeses with designation of origin protected in the European Union
Basque cuisine