Amarelo da Beira Baixa Cheese (DOP)

This is a raw sheep and goat milk cheese from Portugal's Beira Baixa region, located between Portugal's central mountains and the Spanish border. Made with animal rennet, Amarelo has a yellowish paste and small irregular holes; its texture ranges from semi-soft to firm. The flavor of this artisan cheese reflects its homeland: rugged and rustic with a hint of Portugal's sea salt.

Not a cheese for the faint of heart, Amarelo has a distinctive aroma and a forceful, buttery flavor. Along with its piquancy, the cheese parts with a pleasant sensation. Grassy overtones of sheep's milk develop as they linger, leaving you with the desire to take another bite. Pair Amarelo with Pinot Noir or other, spicier reds that can bring out the rich, earthy flavors of the milk.

Mestiço de Tolosa Cheese (IGP)

This is a IGP (Protected Geographical Indication) status cheese made of goat and sheep milk, separated and filtered through a cloth, made in proper rates in cheese-dairy. The production is artisan, such as in other cured cheeses in our country. It is a cured half-soft cheese of average dimensions. Tolosa cheese has wrinkled, fine, entire crust, sometimes lightly oily, of yellow or orange constant colour. The diameter varies between 7 and 10 cm, height between 3 and 4 cm and weight between 150 and 400 g, with regular shape, well defined outline, soft and firm consistency with tympanic sound. The pulp is well joined, slightly closed, with small eyes, of yellow or orange colour. Taste and scent are slightly aggressive, clean, spicy and pleasant.


This is a cheese coming from Alto Alentejo and it's production involves several phases: the first one consists in milk casein heating and coagulation recurring to animal curdle or to thistle (Cynara Cardunculus) as coagulator agent; in the second, the curdled-milk is placed in the cheese-press (with around 8-10 cm of diameter and 3-4 cm of height) constantly squeezing until the final size. Next, follows the making of serum (during about 15 min) allowing to separate the restrained serum in the curd. Then proceeds salting, this operation discloses the know-how practiced in dairies, without a definite measure they reveal the knowledge of several generations. They put salt in the superior face of the cheese and place it in the shelves, in the following day they turn it and salt the other face; finally goes to cure in chambers, the maturation occurs for 3 or 4 weeks until reaching the degree of maturation known by "half-cure” cheese the most appreciated by consumers. The normal production period of this cheese is between middle of January and middle of July, during the normal goat and ovine regular lactation period. The cure conditions are determinant to achieve this cheese, assuring the protection against exaggerate speeds of air circulation. The cheese must be manipulated and stored to a maximum temperature of 10º C.

Picante da Beira Baixa Cheese (DOP)

Picante da Beira Baixa, or Picante, is a hard, piquant, highly salted traditional cheese handcrafted from a mixture of raw sheep and goat's milks. This is dark white to grey coloured cheese weighting between 400 g to 1.000 g. It’s also caled “queimoso” (burning) due to strong burning flavor and peculiar intense smell.

This is a cheese only advised for the fans of strong flavors. It comes mainly from Serra da Gardunha mountain range located beyond the Estrela mountain range, in the Central region of Portugal. With its peak (“Pirâmide”) at about 1224 meters high, mainly dominated by Granite rocks. This area presents excellent conditions for the practice of Paragliding activities.

Pico Cheese (DOP)

Queijo do Pico, named after one of the nine islands of the Azores archipelago, was originally a cow's milk cheese, but it is now often mixed with goat's milk. This is a cylindrical cheese, with a diameter of 16-17 cm, 2-3 cm height and weighing about 650-800 g. With a yellow rind and soft curd, and a strong flavor, its powerful aroma varies according to the degree of aging.

The origin of Queijo do Pico has been lost on the memory of time, but it’s a common understanding that it was already being produced on the XVIII century. Since then and to this day, its savoir fair rules have been passed down from generation to generation.

Bica Cheese

Bica (de queijo) is a raw farmhouse gourmet delicious cheese made from a blend of cow, goat, and sheep's milk. Bica has a distinctive yet mild, buttery flavor and a satiny texture. Like most portuguese cheeses, Bica has a slightly salty flavor because its milk comes from animals that graze on land that sits by the sea. Enjoy it with a medium-bodied red wine before the meal, or with a glass of Port for dessert.

"Bica de Queijo" loosely translated means "bag of cheese". And that is exactly what this cheese looks like. When the curd is fresh, it is placed in a cheese cloth and twisted up into a "bag". As the cheese firms up, the cloth is removed, but its imprint remains, giving rise to its name.

Bica de Queijo is produced in Póvoa de Lanhoso in Minho region (north of Portugal). This is considered the capital of Filigrana, the traditional Portuguese 19,2K gold jewellery. In Póvoa do Lanhoso you may visit Museu do Ouro de Travassos (gold museum).

Toledo Cheese

This is a semi hard consistency cheese made from a blend of cow, sheep and goat's milk. The rind is rubbed in paprika, creating a colorful rustic appearance and an ever-so-slight peppery edge. The cheese itself is mild with a creamy consistency, sweet and grassy and has a full finish.

It is produced in Torres Vedras in the Estremadura region (north of Lisbon), know for it's traditional Carnival and coast line like Santa Cruz spot.

Tomar Cheese

From the name of a small town 150 km northeast of Lisbon, known for its gastronomic specialties and well-known to tourists for its famous Manueline-style window in the Templar convent and Festa dos tabuleiros.

With a resemblance to Rabaçal cheese, Tomar is the smallest of Portuguese cheeses. It weighs barely 50-70 g, can be eaten fresh or aged, and is semi-soft. In Portugal it is known as "Queijinho de Tomar".