Cabrales Cheese

Cabrales is made in a small area of the Picos de Europa from raw cow's milk, or in spring and summer from a mix with goat and sheep, and its character comes from where it is aged: natural limestone caves in the mountains, at high humidity and around ten degrees, where Penicillium develops through the paste from the cave air rather than from added culture, producing dense blue-green veining and a strong, sharp, ammoniacal flavour. Maturing runs two to five months. It holds a protected designation restricting production to a handful of villages, and traditionally it was wrapped in sycamore leaves, now replaced by foil for hygiene rules. A cave museum at Arenas de Cabrales shows the process and an ageing cave.

What you actually see

• The mountain caves - natural limestone chambers used for maturing.
• The natural blueing - mould developing from cave air, not added culture.
• The cave museum - the process shown in a working ageing chamber at Arenas.
• The seasonal milk - cow only in winter, mixed with goat and sheep in summer.

When to go

Year-round for buying; the Cabrales cheese competition in late August auctions the best wheel at prices that have exceeded thirty thousand euros. Cave visits at the museum run daily with guided access.

Honest expectations

The flavour is very strong and genuinely divides people. Being raw milk, it carries the usual caveats. Imitation blue cheeses are sold as Cabrales outside the designated area, so the label matters.

Nearby

Arenas de Cabrales is the centre; the Cares gorge and Covadonga lie either side.