Queso de Leyva cheese

Queso de Leyva. This and the following photographs are courtesy of Orce Serrano Hams

Half-round in olive oil

In a jar with olive oil.

About Queso de Leyva

Queso de Leyva is a hard artisan cheese produced from 100% unpasteurised ewes’ milk by Ignacio Miranda de Leyva and his father at La Finca Castañuelo in Guadix (Granada). The milk used comes only from their own flock of sheep.

Matured for 65-70 days, the cheese has a rich and creamy yet mild flavour and is an adaptation of a recipe for Calahorra, another local cheese. It is produced in small cylinders weighing 1 kg and 1.4 kg and is also available in half-rounds of 500 g and 700 g. It is also sold encased in olive oil.

The cheese is not available in the UK but can be purchased from Iain MacDonald and Gayle Hartley of Orce Serrano Hams who are based in Orce (Granada).