DO the right thing
The Spanish government is keen to protect its regional
produce from imitation, in line with wider concerns
over food provenance.The Instituto Nacional de
Denominaciones de Origen came up with the DO
(denominación de origen) system, covering a range
of foodstuffs including rice, olive oil and cured ham.
The body also devotes considerable time to classifying
Spanish wine (see section 7.2.1. for more). Before
anything can be labelled with the DO standard, strict
criteria must be met. Each product must display
characteristics specific to its region of origin and
conform to an established list of ingredients.
Cabrales
A blue veined stinker matured for up to half a year in the caves of the Picos de Europa.
Careful, it’s powerful. Has its own DO.
Mahón
Named after its hometown on Minorca, Mahón is a hard, salty cow’s milk cheese that
develops an orange rind after being rubbed with paprika.
Idiazábal
A smoky character from the Basque Country made, like most Spanish cheese, from
sheep’s milk.
Manchego
The ‘big cheese’ of Spanish cheese, with its suggestion of salty piquancy, has a
deserved DO. Often served marinated in olive oil as atapasdish.
Afuega’l pitu
An Asturian DO cheese, fed with a little salt before being matured on wooden planks.
The name derives from a tendency to glue itself to the roof of the mouth.
Five famous Spanish cheeses
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3. Art and
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6. Media and
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7. Food and drink 8. Living culture:
the details of
Manchego
The famous sheep’s milk
cheese from La Mancha.
Aceite Monterrubio
Olive oil from Badajoz in
Extremadura.
Jamón serrano
Dry cured mountain ham
from Guijuelo and
Huelva.
Three DO foods
