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UPCOMING FREE ACTIVITIES
Instituto Hemingway reviews
April 16, 2012

An American student reviews our cheese-making courses

This past Spring Break I corralled two of my best friends for a weekend getaway to Rioja, Spain. The land of rich, oakey wines, sumptuous bites, and miles and miles of lush green fields and earthy hills. And when you put greens and hills together, you get... CHEESE.

Yep. And goat’s cheese just happens to make me MOST happy.

Now, I guess some of you might not equate a vacation with doing work. And you might not conjure up the image of field animals when thinking of heading out of town. But as for me, I suppose I want to step out of my element when abroad and experience something elemental about the location. And I love how food binds people together. I`ve come to believe that eating signifies something more. I believe in the constant search to nourish ourselves, to experience the feeling of contentment and fullness. I struggle with the beautifully horrific brevity of it. Everyone must eat. In “breaking bread” with others, I feel welcomed and known.

So, imagine the three of us entering Berta`s Quesería with high aspirations, a few semesters of college Spanish, and grumbling tummies on Easter morning. Yep... the goats had been milked and the frothy, sweet liquid was awaiting to meet us.

This cheese making excursion involved a very personal transaction: the sole cheese maker educated us on the process of making cheese. She is a one woman show, and her product is a fusion of half science, half art and 100% spirit. It wasn`t as if she had "found her calling" and was chomping at the bit to share it with us. More so, the manner in which she makes cheese is dutiful, and yet pleasant. Berta is a natural teacher, who isn`t mystified by her craft but appreciates its functionality. There were several points in the course where my friends and I ooohed and aahhed and she stared at us in a little confusion as to what the fuss was all about.

But the fuss, let me assure you, was well deserved.

This is no "artisan" cheese maker. It doesn`t exist here. Berta is hard at work producing at least four unique handmade cheeses that will surely please all palates. The traditionally crafted goat style cheeses are made with goats her family farms. She makes a few soft cheeses (produced in a few days) that are similar to "fresh cheese" or a round goat tasting (or sweet) burato like cheese, a cream cheese, and two with varying degrees of texture and strength.

We got a HUGE lesson in how cheese is made. We ourselves made a cottage like cheese, adding the ingredients (rennet, salt) and monitoring the heat of the milk ourselves. It`s the rennet that is the magic key. Rennet contains many enzymes, including a proteolytic enzyme (protease) that coagulates the milk, causing it to separate into solids (curds) and liquid (whey). They are also very important in the stomach of young mammals as they digest their mother’s milk. The Rennet used at this quesería was vegetarian, made from flowers. There are many sources of enzymes, ranging from plants, fungi, and microbial sources, that can substitute for animal rennet. Other examples include dried caper leaves, nettles, thistles, mallow, and Ground Ivy (Creeping Charlie).

We also toured the small building, checking out the big basin where the cheeses are made, and then peering into the humid controlled rooms were the molds rest, and well, get moldy. Berta can handmake 41 molds in one batch, taking most of the morning to make them and most of the afternoon to clean up. She sells 80% of the cheese to locals, and the rest at farmers’ markets and a handful of small restaraunts.

In tasting the cheese, Berta showed us the proper way to construct a cheese plate (going clockwise, place the mildest to the strongest cheese in order). And we sampled Berta`s fare. In fact, she opened up the "first cheese of the year," for which the locals have been salivating in anticipation for the past few weeks, knowing the lovely little rounds had been resting for approximately 2 1/2 months.

Tart, sweet, creamy, structured, yeasty, nutty, and a little fruity, we nibbled and giggled, and felt full. Berta tells us that the locals can sense the changes in the goats’ diets because their palates are so refined.

Far from refinement, I think we were just high on the experience of being allowed IN. Being spectators and appreciators of a small craft that is part of something bigger: the land, the seasons, the creators that roam in both, and the lifelong learner dwelling in me.

Yes, generous and inviting Berta gave us some cheese to take "home." One lasted four hours before we devoured it. The other, so precious, we saved for a week later, as I celebrated my birthday. With Berta`s cheese.

If you`d like to arrange a tour of your own, or learn more about the food and wine culture of Rioja, contact José at Instituto Hemingway. The company has outstanding customer service and offers a range of culinary and cultural experiences.

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