Types of Spanish Cheese 🧀 Spain produces more than 150 different types of cheese, each with unique flavours and traditions. Cheeses are made from cow’s, goat’s, and sheep’s milk (and often blends), and are generally grouped into three main categories:
How Spanish Cheeses Are Classified
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Fresco – fresh, not aged
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Semi curado – semi-cured, aged 2–3 months
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Curado – cured, aged 4 months or longer
Popular Types of Spanish Cheese You Must Try
Manchego (La Mancha)
Perhaps the most famous Spanish cheese, Manchego is made from unpasteurised sheep’s milk in the La Mancha region. The inedible rind has a distinctive basket-weave pattern, and flavour changes with age:
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Semi Curado (3 months): Supple, moist, fruity with a tangy note.
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Curado (6 months): Nutty, caramel flavour with pleasant acidity.
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Viejo (12 months): Crumbly, golden interior, sweet and lingering taste.
🔸 Great in: fried manchego with Romesco sauce, cheese puffs, or simply on bread.
Cabrales (Asturias)
A powerful blue cheese made from a blend of raw cow’s, goat’s, and sheep’s milk. It is aged in limestone caves where natural humidity encourages penicillium mould.
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Sharp, salty, and aromatic.
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Excellent with red wine, figs, salami, or as a base for sauces.
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Sold wrapped in dark-green foil with the PDO Queso de Cabrales stamp.
Caña de Cabra (Murcia)
A soft, creamy goat’s milk cheese in a log shape.
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Mild, citrusy, and savoury when young.
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Stronger, sharper flavour as it ages.
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Often served sliced on bread, fried with breadcrumbs and honey, or in salads.
Recipes
Baked goat cheese with honey, rosemary and green chutney
Baked Goats Cheese in Tomato Sauce
Torta del Casar (Extremadura)
Made from raw sheep’s milk and coagulated with cardoon (wild thistle), giving it a slightly bitter edge.
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Soft, creamy, almost spreadable interior.
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Traditionally enjoyed by slicing the top rind off and scooping with bread.
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Perfect as an appetizer with a glass of red wine.
Recipe
Zamorano (Castile–León, Zamora)
A hard sheep’s milk cheese matured for 6 months.
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Pale yellow, crumbly texture.
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Buttery, nutty flavour.
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Similar to Manchego but made from Churra and Castilian sheep breeds.
Castellano / Castigliano (Castile–León)
Another sheep’s milk cheese, aged at least 2 months.
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Moist, buttery, slightly spicy flavour.
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Cream-caramel notes with a touch of salt.
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Similar in look to Manchego but more delicate.
Arzúa-Ulloa (Galicia)
A soft cow’s milk cheese with a thin yellow rind.
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Creamy, smooth, slightly sweet and grassy.
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Ripens in as little as 6 days.
La Peral (Asturias)
A blue cheese made from cow’s milk with a touch of sheep’s cream.
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Aged 2–5 months.
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Mild and delicate when young, spicier as it matures.
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Smooth, slightly crumbly texture.
Mahón (Minorca, Balearic Islands)
A cow’s milk cheese ranging from soft to hard, often rubbed with butter, paprika, or oil during aging.
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Artisanal Mahón: aged 2–3 months, dense and ivory with rich flavour.
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Mahón Reserva: harder, drier, saltier.
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Traditionally eaten with black pepper, tarragon, and olive oil.
Tetilla (Galicia)
Named for its breast-like shape (“tetilla” = small breast).
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Soft, creamy, ivory cheese with a thin rind.
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Mild, buttery with a slight tang.
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Excellent with quince paste, crackers, or white wine.
Queso de Murcia al Vino (Murcia)
Also called Murcian Wine Cheese, made from pasteurised goat’s milk.
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Semi-soft texture, ivory white paste.
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Washed in red wine during aging, giving its rind a purple colour.
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Creamy, slightly acidic flavour, great with fruit, nuts, and wine.
Why Spanish Cheese is Special
From crumbly aged sheep’s cheese to creamy blue varieties, types of Spanish cheese reflect the country’s landscapes, climates, and traditions. Whether served simply with bread and wine, baked into recipes, or enjoyed with cured meats like Jamón and chorizo, Spanish cheese belongs on every food lover’s table.
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Final Thoughts on Spanish Cheese
👉 Which is your favourite Spanish cheese? Leave us a comment below!
