Ossau-Iraty vs Tomme des Pyrénées
Ossau-Iraty
Facts
- Milk
- Sheep
- Texture
- Semi-hard
- Type
- Pressed
- Rind
- Natural rind
- Country
- France
- Place
- Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Ossau-Iraty is a pressed sheep's milk cheese from Pyrénées-Atlantiques, in southwestern France. The name joins the Ossau valley and the Iraty forest, two landmarks in that Basque and Béarn country. Wheels are pale inside, with a natural rind that runs from orange-yellow to grey. The taste is nutty, lightly salty, and gently sheepy, without the sharp bite of a very old grating cheese. It is a mountain cheese meant for the table as well as the kitchen.
Tomme des Pyrénées
Facts
- Texture
- Semi-hard
- Type
- Pressed
- Rind
- Waxed or sealed
- Country
- France
- Place
- Midi-Pyrénées
Tomme des Pyrénées is a rustic semi-hard cheese from Midi-Pyrénées, in the French Pyrenees. The usual shop wheel is a squat cylinder with a black or gold coat that makes it easy to spot. Under that coat the paste is supple, ivory to pale yellow, and dotted with small irregular openings. The taste runs from fresh and mild to fuller and lightly earthy, depending on how long the wheel rests. It is a flexible table cheese rather than a sharp grating block.