Pag cheese or Pag Island cheese (, ) is a

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

n variety of hard, distinctively flavored

sheep milk Sheep 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), pecorino romano (Italy), Roquefort (France) and Manchego (Spain). ...

cheese Cheese is a type of dairy product produced in a range 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 prod ...

originating from the Adriatic

island of Pag Pag (pronounced ) is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea. It is the fifth-largest island of the Croatian coast and the one with the longest coastline. In the 2011 census, the population of the island was 9,059. There are two towns on ...

History

Until early in the 20th century, the inhabitants of Pag had their own dry stone huts in which they milked the sheep and made Pag cheese. The majority of the pastures are located on the hilly parts of the island. Historically, there was no private ownership of the pastures and the sheep freely grazed on all of the land. Over time, the pastures became privately owned, so the shepherds moved back into towns, and their huts became pasture homes. As shepherds commuted to and from pastures, the women assumed the role of cheese makers. Besides being food for the locals, Pag cheese was also traded in markets across Croatia.

Production process

Island Pag has a long tradition of cheese making and agriculture. Because of the Pag Bora, a strong, cool, dry wind, a dry salt dust is scattered all over the island, letting only resilient and

aromatic In organic chemistry, aromaticity is a chemical property describing the way in which a conjugated system, conjugated ring of unsaturated bonds, lone pairs, or empty orbitals exhibits a stabilization stronger than would be expected from conjugati ...

plant species to survive. Sheeps on Pag feed off of these plants, which influences the taste of their milk, used to produce Pag cheese. Pag cheese is aged five to eighteen months, depending on the desired end product. Cheeses that have been aged over 10 years can also be found. The aging process and flavor is affected by seasonal changes in temperature and humidity. Younger cheeses tend to be creamy, with a fresher aroma and a yellow color. Older cheeses are darker, harder, with a grainy texture, and a more mature flavor.

Certification

The main producers of Pag cheese came together to form an association with the aim of obtaining

Protected Designation of Origin The protected designation of origin (PDO) is a type of geographical indication of the European Union aimed at preserving the designations of origin of food-related products. The designation was created in 1992 and its main purpose is to designat ...

for Pag cheese. The

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...

has granted the designation on 25 November 2019. PDO imposes conditions on production techniques, as well as a particular origin of base products which are meant to ensure that Pag cheese remains a product of Pag.

Awards

In 2017, Paška sirana won a gold award for Sheep Milk Specialty Cheese at the Global Cheese Awards, and

Sirana MiH Sirana (also known as Sirana de Odienné) is a village in northwestern Ivory Coast. It is in the sub-prefecture of Odienné, Odienné Department, Kabadougou Region, Denguélé District. At the west end of the village is a border crossing with Guin ...

won a gold medal for its ''Paški sir'' at Croatian Cheese Days. In 2018, Sirana Gligora’s ''Paški sir'' won the Super Gold Award at the

World Cheese Awards The Guild of Fine Food (GFF) is a British family-owned industry journal publisher that covers gourmet food news. It was founded by Bob Farrand in 1992. All five directors are members of the Farrand family. Bob Farrand is the chairman, his son ...

in 2018. In 2022, at the World Cheese Awards, Sirana Gligora’s ''žigljen'' won Super Gold, ''Paški sir'' won Gold, ''Žigljen extra old'' and ''Paški extra old'' won Silver, and ''Dimljeni čili'' (Smoked chili) won Bronze.

References

External links