Cheese continues to be one of the world’s most beloved foods and is cherished for its versatility, diverse flavors and unique history.
Varieties such as Camembert and Mozzarella have been well known for decades and are used in countless cooking and preparations around the world today. However, Europe still has many secret ancient cheeses, rooted deeply in cultural identity, tradition and resistance.
Made in practice centuries ago, these varieties are matured using animal stomachs, fermented with live cheese mites, washed in salted water, or made in shepherd’s sheds far away.
If you’re passionate about cheese, this epic journey will take you from some of the crazy cheeses below Europe, from dramatic mountains, far villages, flatlands and more.
Pool cheese, Serbia
Start with this unforgettable cheese pilgrimage in Belgrade, Serbia, and a quest to taste the world’s rarest and most expensive cheese, pool cheese, the world’s most thought-about.
From Belgrade, travelers can easily take the train to Sremska Mitrovika (Vojvodina) and take a taxi or car rental to the Zasavika Marsh to the Zasavika Lovaliser.
The coveted cheese made from milk from the Balkan donkey is produced only in this small reserve by a single cheese maker called Slobodan Simić.
Made with the milk of 100 endangered Balcanjeny (female donkeys) and sometimes mixed with goat milk, the pool is rich, nutty, earthy and slightly sweet.
To produce 1 kilogram of cheese, approximately 25 liters of milk is required. Amazing €1,000 per kg. Conservation efforts and donkey care costs also contribute to the price. This requires Jenny to milk up to three times a day due to the extremely low milk yield.
The reserve also offers other products made from donkey milk, such as cosmetics and liqueurs.
bonus? Watch adorable donkeys and other native animals like beavers and furry mangarika pigs as you immerse yourself in the pristine nature perfect for a calm river cruise or picnic.
Travelers can stay at Hotel Sirmium in Slemska Mitrovika and enjoy the rustic charm of the town. Blown by the local fruit brandy made from pears and plums called Rakiya in Zasabika’s traditional Serbian farmhouse, and brandy is a local fruit made from pears and plums of Zasabika.
Albanian tofu
From Serbia, travelers can take a train or drive to Podgorica in Montenegro, then continue by car or bus to Skodel, then to cursed mountain villages such as Tess and Balbona.
Here, locals make jidge, a soft, tense tofu cheese, in a small stone farmhouse. This cheese is often stored in a clay pot with olive oil and eaten with peppers and herbs, and is deeply representative of Albanian highland traditions.
Gjizë is made by acidifying milk using citric acid or yogurt, giving it a dry, sour ricotta-like flavour. It is also used in traditional dishes Albania’s From famous.
While the strange restaurant may help with that, travelers have a better chance of staying with local families and trekking from a smaller, more distant village with a more immersive taste experience.
Hike the trails represented from the famous Balbona that connects both valleys through the Albanian Alps. In Theth, visitors can head to the natural spring of blue eyes, stunning turquoise colours, or Grunus Falls and Theth Church.
In Balbona, explore old Balbona and old plants in the lake, such as Xhema Lake, or take a picture-perfect ferry on the Lake Coman Ferry.
Stay at guest house Rrashkadoli or at guest house Lazer Cardaku in Balbona.
Push into a farmer’s dinner with wild mountain herbs, fresh bread and jijitze (a delicious pie with spinach, cheese, meat and potatoes).
Cacio Cavallo Podrico in Italy
Take a drive or bus to ride a Durz before boarding a ferry or train. Take the train from Bali to Basilicata or take the train for the next stop on this epic cheese journey.
Here, travelers can sample Cacio Cavallo Podolico cheese, a very seasonal and rare Italian gem. This pear-shaped variety is made from milk from the rare, semi-wild Podric cows of southern Italy natives.
The cheese is tied with a rope and hangs from the rafters to age through the traditional pasta firata (grown tofu) process. The aging process can take from three months to two years or more.
Many cows roam mostly all year round. In other words, Casio Cavallo Podricos are highly regarded and extremely rare, and travelers must trek to the dairy or farms of mountain shepherds around Basilicata and Calabria to taste fresh during the summer milking season.
The cheese has a strong, rich, intricate and spicy flavour, defending the wild meadow filled with a variety of grasses and herbs that Podric cows roam around. It has delicious notes of herbs, smoke and toast, and balances fruity and tongue.
Young cheeses are more delicate and sweet, while older cheeses develop unique tangy and spicy flavors and semi-hard textures with age.
Travelers can stay at mountain dairy and Italian farms known as Agriturismith around Polino National Park to taste this elusive cheese.
By helping out farm activities on the work farm, you will experience traditional rural Italian life, while also taking part in olive oil production, wine tasting, truffle hunting, cooking classes and more.
Often dotted remote and scenic locations in rural southern Italy, these farms and dairy farms offer a gentle opportunity for slow travel and cultural immersion with locally produced sustainable produce. Travelers also contribute to the preservation of these rural areas through their visits.
Pollino National Park also offers countless horse riding, hiking, mountain biking, canyon, rafting and rock climbing opportunities, among other outdoor activities.
Switzerland, Ziger
From Basilicata, take a bus or train to Naples, then head to Milan. From there, travelers can take another train to Zurich, then head to alpine villages in the Bern-Orland region, such as Grindelwald and Wengen.
Here, travelers can sample Ziger, an ancient Swiss whey cheese. It is made from remaining whey from other Swiss cheeses such as emmental and was once considered “peasant survival food.” It has a long and rich history dating back to the 8th century, when it was first created in a monastery.
Ziger, and in particular Glarner Schabziger, a particular type of Ziger cheese, is packed with ground blue fenugreek, with a unique lime green colour, spicy and stimulating flavour, and a hard, rough texture.
Rather than being eaten by yourself as a standalone cheese, it is primarily used as a seasoning, on top of potatoes and pasta, or mixed with butter.
Today, despite being Switzerland’s oldest protected food brand, Grana Shabiger is little known outside of certain alpine regions, and its production has dropped significantly.
This is primarily due to a shift from whey-based diets, increased purchasing power, and increased others Swiss cheese. Also, cheese is rarely exported and is usually eaten by the farmers themselves.
Travelers can obtain Ziger from the Bernese Overland area and Uri and the Little Farmers Market at Mountain Dairy.
Grindelwald also offers many outdoor activities. Take the gondola first. Visitors can experience panoramic views and a first cliff walk in Tissot, a metal passageway along the cliff with suspension bridges.
Refreshing and untouched soak The environment of the alpine mountains Try the zipline on a hike to the picturesque Lake Bacharupshi, or with the first flyer zipline. Rent a mountain cart or trotti bike and run down the slopes from the beginning of summer or explore the Glacier Canyon for spectacular views from Munlichen’s perspective.
At Grindelwald, travelers can stay in the hotel Belvedere for breathtaking views, or stay at the Romantik Hotel Schweizerhof, or choose to enjoy traditional Swiss delicacies such as Rösti, Ziger Cheesecake and Alpine Cured Meats.
Germany, Danish cheese
From Zurich, you will take a direct route to Leipzig, Germany, then drive to Würkwitz in Saxony-Anhalt. This small village is the only place where adventurous travelers can taste the little-known German cheese, Milbenkäse.
This ancient cheese dates back to the Middle Ages. Seasoned with salt and caraway, quark cheese balls are aged in wooden boxes with cheese mites and rye flour for at least three months, and even up to a year.
These live microscope cheese mites eat together with cheese, dig holes through quarks, excrete digestive enzymes, and help with fermentation and maturation. The skin turns yellow after about a month, and will turn reddish brown and black, depending on the length of cheese ageing.
Depending on the age of the cheese, it has a sharp, tangy taste with a eager, bitter aftertaste, similar to Harzer cheese.
Würchwitz Milbenkäse Manufaktur is today’s only commercial producer, with the entire village revolving around cheese and its history.
Travelers can also see statues in the town centre, the Mite Cheese Museum and the Cheese Mite Memorial, which celebrate this deep medieval survival food practice. Head to the historic village hall (La South) or visit St. Michael Kirche Church for detailed insights into local architecture.
Another nearby attraction is Unteridisches Zeitz, a unique wartime and medieval underground tunnel system consisting mainly of beer cellars.
You’ll stay at hotels like Lumiere Boutique Hotel in Leipzig. It’s only 45 minutes from Würchwitz. Don’t forget to dine at a local inn known as Gassauzer near Würkwitz. Here you can get rye bread with mille beer, beer and worst.
Urgeria, Spain
From Leipzig, you take a high-speed train to Paris, then another train to Barcelona, then a drive to Alt Urgell Valleys, then to Las Urgell. Pyrenees in Catalonia, Spain.
Here, travelers can try the final cheese on this epic journey – the rarity of pyrene, known as Ulgueria cheese. This is soft washed lind cheese, only found in the Pyrene Valley.
Currently available only from Cadí Cooperative, La Seu D’urgell’s cheese and dairy cooperative. It sources milk from more than 200 small farms in La Seu D’urgell, the Alt Hurgell area and Andorran Borderlands.
It is the only protected designation of Catalonia’s sole origin (PDO) cheese, and is also the award-winning Spanish cheese. It is made by making curded and pasteurized milk together with rennet, pushing the curd into the mold. The wheels are aged at least 45 days after brine, during which time the skin is washed multiple times with yeast brine.
It has a slightly salty, robust buttery taste, with occasional sour and bitterness, with underlying nuts and fruity notes. The orange brown skin gives Urigeria a mild mushroom and earthy aroma.
Travelers can also hike along the ancient Pilene Cheese Route to smaller, remote farms in search of more authentic, immersive cheese adventures.
The Alt Hurgell region offers excellent adventure sports such as kayaking, white water rafting, winter mountain biking, hiking and skiing.
Travelers can visit the historic cathedral of La Sous Urgel or visit the Parish Museum for religious artefacts. Explore the charming old town with many cafes and bars and narrow streets, or take a day trip to nearby Andorra.
Stay at Parador de la Sue Durger for extravagance or try a riverside experience at the hotel’s restaurant, by the pool.
Don’t skip traditional delicacies like Fregit, pork and bean plates, and Manteau Echira del Alto Urgel.