Leña afinado, cow's milk cheese

The cow's milk cheese Leña afinado (smoked cheese) comes from the family creamery Quesería Cultivo in Spain. It is made from quality fresh cow's milk, which is the basis of its delicate yet full flavour.

After the traditional processing of the milk with rennet and cultures, the curd is shaped and enters the ageing stage, which usually lasts 4–6 weeks, depending on the desired intensity of flavour and texture. During ageing, the cheese gains a firmer structure and a balanced aromatic profile, its flavour gradually harmonising and developing. A unique feature of this cheese is smoking over wood (leña), carried out slowly so that the cheese does not lose its creaminess. This process creates a delicate smoky fragrance and naturally woody tones.

Leña afinado has a full, gently sweet flavour with smoky accents, which makes it ideal for cheese platters, tapas, combining with dark bread or charcuterie, but it is also excellent in hot and cold dishes, where it enhances the flavour of the other ingredients.