Picón Bejes-Tresviso is a

blue cheese Blue cheese is any cheese made with the addition of Microbial food cultures, cultures of edible Mold (fungus), molds, which create blue-green spots or veins through the cheese. Blue cheeses vary in flavor from mild to strong and from slightly ...

from

Cantabria Cantabria (, ; ) is an autonomous community and Provinces of Spain, province in northern Spain with Santander, Cantabria, Santander as its capital city. It is called a , a Nationalities and regions of Spain, historic community, in its current ...

, in the north of

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. It has been protected under

Denominación de Origen In Spain and Latin America, the (; )In other languages of Spain: * Catalan: (). * (). * (). is part of a regulatory geographical indication system used primarily for foodstuffs such as cheeses, condiments, honey, and meats, among others. ...

(DO) legislation since 1994, prior to which it was traditionally known as ''Picón de Tresviso'' and ''Queso Picón de Bejes''. The designated area centers in the Liébana valley and production is restricted to the municipalities of Potes, Pesaguero, Cabezón de Liébana, Camaleño, Cillorigo de Liébana, Peñarrubia, Tresviso and Vega de Liébana.

Production

A mixture of

cow Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are called co ...

's,

sheep Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to d ...

's and

goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a species of Caprinae, goat-antelope that is mostly kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the ...

milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of lactating mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfeeding, breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. ...

is used in its production (although not necessarily from Bejes or Tresviso). The

curd Curd is obtained by Denaturation (biochemistry), coagulating milk in a sequential process called curdling. It can be a final dairy product or the first stage in cheesemaking. The coagulation can be caused by adding rennet, a Kefir cheese, ...

is created using a precise dose of

rennet Rennet () is a complex set of enzymes produced in the stomachs of ruminant mammals. Chymosin, its key component, is a protease, protease enzyme that curdling, curdles the casein in milk. In addition to chymosin, rennet contains other enzymes, su ...

and cut into

hazelnut The hazelnut is the fruit of the hazel tree and therefore includes any of the nuts deriving from species of the genus '' Corylus'', especially the nuts of the species ''Corylus avellana''. They are also known as cobnuts or filberts according to ...

-sized pieces, which are then drained and allowed to dry. The curd pieces are placed loosely in the

mould A mold () or mould () is one of the structures that certain fungi can form. The dust-like, colored appearance of molds is due to the formation of spores containing fungal secondary metabolites. The spores are the dispersal units of the fungi ...

, allowing sufficient air to circulate and initiate the growth of

penicillium ''Penicillium'' () is a genus of Ascomycota, ascomycetous fungus, fungi that is part of the mycobiome of many species and is of major importance in the natural environment, in food spoilage, and in food and drug production. Some members of th ...

spores. The cheese is then salted and left for an initial drying and curing period of between 12 and 18 days, at a temperature between . Although much of the process thus far may take place in modern industrial units, DO regulations stipulate that final maturity be achieved by further curing in a natural limestone cave, typical of the geology of the Liébana region, for a minimum of two months.Pićon-Bejes-Tresviso
Maturation in this cool, high-humidity environment develops the particular taste and brevibacterium-infested crust typical of many

Characteristics

The finished

cylindrical A cylinder () has traditionally been a Solid geometry, three-dimensional solid, one of the most basic of curvilinear geometric shapes. In elementary geometry, it is considered a Prism (geometry), prism with a circle as its base. A cylinder may ...

cheese may be between high and have a diameter of , weighing anything between and . The rind is thin and grey to yellow-green in colour. The flesh is smooth, white, and compact, with streaks and patches of teal-coloured veins and a powerful, slightly spicy flavour. Acidity values in the fat content of the cheese have been shown to increase by a factor of twenty over the uncured curd.

Marketing

Prior to DO regulation, it was often sold wrapped in Sycamore Maple (''

Acer pseudoplatanus ''Acer pseudoplatanus'', known as the sycamore in the British Isles and as the sycamore maple in the United States, is a species of maple native to Central Europe and Western Asia. It is a large deciduous, broad-leaved tree, tolerant of wind an ...

'') leaves and is still marketed this way locally, albeit without the DO certification label. It is more widely available wrapped in a gold aluminum foil that permits stamping with an authentication seal and serial number. As result, leaf-bound Picón Bejes-Tresviso cheese is rarely found outside of the Liébana region.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Picon Bejes-Tresviso Cheeses with designation of origin protected in the European Union Spanish cheeses Cantabrian cuisine Cow's-milk cheeses Sheep's-milk cheeses Goat's-milk cheeses Blue cheeses Spanish products with protected designation of origin Picos de Europa

Production

Characteristics

Marketing

See also

References