Cheese Database

Serpa cheese vs Serra da Estrela

Serpa cheese

Facts

Milk
Sheep
Texture
Semi-soft
Type
Pressed
Rind
Natural rind
Country
Portugal
Place
Alentejo

Serpa cheese is a semi-soft sheep's milk cheese from Portugal. It is formed in low rounds, with a thin straw-colored rind and a pale, moist paste. Thistle rennet, drawn from the cardoon flower, sets the milk and shapes the aroma. A young cheese can be soft enough to spoon, while an older one turns firmer and spicier. Sheep's milk and that vegetable rennet define the style.

Serra da Estrela

Facts

Milk
Sheep
Texture
Soft
Type
Pressed
Rind
Natural rind
Country
Portugal
Place
Serra da Estrela

Serra da Estrela is a sheep's milk cheese from the Serra da Estrela mountains in Portugal. Shepherds and small dairies set the milk with a thistle flower, not with animal rennet, and that choice shapes both the texture and the taste. A ripe wheel can turn so soft that people spoon the center. A wheel kept longer becomes firmer and better for grating. The mountain range and the name on the cheese are the same place.