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How is cheese made?
COVAP milk is the key raw ingredient of our cheese.
First of all, the milk is collected from our COVAP partner farms. The milk undergoes strict quality controls with checks carried out by our Technical Team in order to ensure optimum hygiene and health conditions. The milk is then analysed and purified, eliminating any impurities picked up from the farms. It is homogenised to reduce the size of the fat globules it contains and to stop a cream layer from separating out of the milk and settling on the top during storage.
Pasteurisation: Milk is pasteurised to eliminate microbial pathogens. The process consists of heating the milk to between 75 and 80 °C for 15 to 20 seconds.
Curdling: After the milk is pasteurised, it is put into vats and heated to 30 °C. Ferments are added to replace the microbes eliminated during the pasteurisation process. The milk and ferments are stirred for 25 or 30 minutes and animal or vegetable rennet is added. The milk is coagulated at 30 or 32 °C for 40 or 45 minutes, and is transformed into a casein gel known as curd.
Cutting the Curd: Once the milk has been curdled, the curd is cut into cubes. The temperature is then increased by about 5 °C so that the whey is forced out of each cube.
Moulding and Pressing: The curdled milk is then poured into moulds that determine the cheese's shape and size. Perforated plastic moulds are used. The inside of the cylindrical mould is printed with a zigzag pattern so that the finished cheese looks as though it is wrapped in a traditional esparto grass mould. Once the moulds are filled, they are covered with lids. A wheat ear is carved out of the underside of each lid. The traditional wooden boards used to press Spanish cheeses also feature this wheat ear, which is left imprinted on the top of the cheese. Pressure is applied to the cheese, forcing out any whey that might have been left behind in the curd, and giving the cheese its final shape.
Salting and Maturing: After the cheese is pressed, the all-important salting process takes place. This can be carried out using various procedures which transform the initial curd into the end product, giving the cheese its characteristic flavour and preventing the proliferation of micro-organisms. The cheese's rind forms during this part of the process. Maturing is the final stage in the cheese-making process. The cheese gradually loses moisture through evaporation. It is at this stage that the many different characteristic flavours and aromas of COVAP's cheeses are developed. The cheeses are matured in specially-adapted rooms where the temperature and moisture levels are closely controlled. These variables, along with the length of the maturing process and the type of milk used, determine the characteristics of the different types of cheese.
First of all, the milk is collected from our COVAP partner farms. The milk undergoes strict quality controls with checks carried out by our Technical Team in order to ensure optimum hygiene and health conditions. The milk is then analysed and purified, eliminating any impurities picked up from the farms. It is homogenised to reduce the size of the fat globules it contains and to stop a cream layer from separating out of the milk and settling on the top during storage.
Pasteurisation: Milk is pasteurised to eliminate microbial pathogens. The process consists of heating the milk to between 75 and 80 °C for 15 to 20 seconds.
Curdling: After the milk is pasteurised, it is put into vats and heated to 30 °C. Ferments are added to replace the microbes eliminated during the pasteurisation process. The milk and ferments are stirred for 25 or 30 minutes and animal or vegetable rennet is added. The milk is coagulated at 30 or 32 °C for 40 or 45 minutes, and is transformed into a casein gel known as curd.
Cutting the Curd: Once the milk has been curdled, the curd is cut into cubes. The temperature is then increased by about 5 °C so that the whey is forced out of each cube.
Moulding and Pressing: The curdled milk is then poured into moulds that determine the cheese's shape and size. Perforated plastic moulds are used. The inside of the cylindrical mould is printed with a zigzag pattern so that the finished cheese looks as though it is wrapped in a traditional esparto grass mould. Once the moulds are filled, they are covered with lids. A wheat ear is carved out of the underside of each lid. The traditional wooden boards used to press Spanish cheeses also feature this wheat ear, which is left imprinted on the top of the cheese. Pressure is applied to the cheese, forcing out any whey that might have been left behind in the curd, and giving the cheese its final shape.
Salting and Maturing: After the cheese is pressed, the all-important salting process takes place. This can be carried out using various procedures which transform the initial curd into the end product, giving the cheese its characteristic flavour and preventing the proliferation of micro-organisms. The cheese's rind forms during this part of the process. Maturing is the final stage in the cheese-making process. The cheese gradually loses moisture through evaporation. It is at this stage that the many different characteristic flavours and aromas of COVAP's cheeses are developed. The cheeses are matured in specially-adapted rooms where the temperature and moisture levels are closely controlled. These variables, along with the length of the maturing process and the type of milk used, determine the characteristics of the different types of cheese.