New Catalan cheese on the market

There’s nothing quite like the taste of artisan cheese – the making of which is a profession far from being long lost. In fact, in the Catalan Pyrenees, new products are being elaborated even now. Including a new cheese – one thought specifically to be melted for raclette.

Found in the northern Al-Urgell County on the border with Andorra, the cheesemaker and shop Mas d’Eroles d’Adrall, has remade one of its most popular items, the Ermesenda, in a new format. It will be elaborated into a bar form, made even easier to use for raclette, a Swiss recipe involving melted semi-hard cheese to be consumed with charcuterie, potatoes, and more.

The company also has a new product in the works. Made from raw sheep milk, this would resemble a typical Spanish Extremadura cheese. If you’re an especially avid fan of what’s new on the cheese market, you can even sample it before it hits the shelves: it’ll be showcased at the Lactium exhibition of Catalan cheeses in the nearby town of Vic on May 12 and 13.

Around 14,000 kilos of artisanal cheese are produced at Mas d’Eroles d’Adrall per year, totaling at almost 300 kilos a week. The company began in 2001, with the main objective of achieving success without stopping to innovate and introducing new products onto the market.  

Cheesemaker Salvador Maura explained that the difference between cow, sheep, and goat cheese is as noticeable as per the different types of animals but instead depending on their diet and upbringing. The majority of their production specializes in bovine products, while 10% is sheep cheese. Still, Maura explained that some clients hesitate to believe the items are cow cheese and not goat, due to the taste and “strength.” The artisan explained that it all comes down to selection.