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Cheese from Croatia and Slovenia, Istria

Istarski ovčji sir / Istrski ovčji sir

Raw or pasteurised sheep milk is warmed to 32–36 °C, given lysozyme and, for pasteurised milk, a mesophilic and thermophilic culture, and set with rennet in 15–45 minutes. The pea-size curd is cooked to 42–45 °C, moulded, self-pressed or pressed, and salted dry or in brine. The cheese ripens 60 days to 12 months at up to 19 °C.

Fully documentedCheese2.1 months – 12 monthsPDO (joint HR–SI, PDO-HR+SI-02859; Reg. (EU) 2025/2496 of 3 December 2025)Family: Hard pressed ewe cheese family (Manchego and Pecorino Romano as templates)

Recipe

Amounts from a sourceThe specification fixes the lysozyme dose per 100 litres but no batch size. A cheese weighs 1.8–4.5 kg.
Sheep milk, raw or pasteurisedFrom sheep of any breed raised in the area; cooled to at most 6 °C within 2 hours and made into cheese within 48 hours of milking[hr-spec]
Lysozyme (against late blowing), dissolved in water1–5 g per 100 l of milk[hr-spec]
Dairy culture of mesophilic and thermophilic lactic bacteriaRequired with pasteurised milk; optional with raw milk, which relies on its own non-starter lactic bacteria[hr-spec]
Rennet[hr-spec]
Salt[hr-spec]
Startermesophilic + thermophilic culture (mandatory if pasteurised; optional with raw milk)

Total time across the recorded steps: 2.1 months – 12 months

Start
Drag the bar or press Play
up to 6 °C

What changes: The sheep milk is chilled to 6 °C or less within 2 hours of milking

Step 1 of 10
Cool and keep the milk
Time
up to 2 days
Set
Temperature
up to 6 °C
Set
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria
Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Raw or pasteurised sheep milk is warmed to 32–36 °C, given lysozyme and, for pasteurised milk, a mesophilic and thermophilic culture, and set with rennet in 15–45 minutes. The pea-size curd is cooked to 42–45 °C, moulded, self-pressed or pressed, and salted dry or in brine. The cheese ripens 60 days to 12 months at up to 19 °C. Made in 10 steps over 2.1 months – 12 months. The longest step, ripen, takes 2–12 months (Udruga uzgajivača istarskih koza i ovaca 2023) and runs at up to 19 °C (Udruga uzgajivača istarskih koza i ovaca 2023). Mesophilic and thermophilic lactic acid bacteria and Non-starter lactic acid bacteria naturally present in raw milk do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step2–12 monthsSet[hr-spec]Ripen
Temperatureup to 19 °CSet[hr-spec]Ripen

What makes this one different

A hard Istrian sheep cheese protected jointly by Croatia and Slovenia, with curd cooked to 42–45 °C, made from the milk of sheep reared semi-extensively on local pastures. Cheese made only from Istrian sheep (istrska pramenka) may say so on the label.

Composition
At least 60% dry matter and at least 45% fat in dry matter
Rind
Smooth and even; a clear polymer coat is allowed. The Croatian specification describes it as lemon- to dark-yellow, the EU single document as yellow-brown to brown
Size
Cylinder 16–22 cm across and 6–9 cm high, 1.8–4.5 kg
Traceability
Each wheel carries a serial-numbered casein mark; cutting, grating and packing must be done in the area

Related ferments

Safety

Raw milk is allowed. It must be cooled to 6 °C or less within 2 hours and made into cheese within 48 hours, and the ripe cheese is kept at 4–8 °C. ANSES names Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella and enterohaemorrhagic E. coli as hazards of raw-milk cheeses and tells pregnant women, young children, people over 65 and people with weak immunity to avoid them, apart from cooked pressed kinds such as Gruyère or Comté. It names soft bloomy-rind and short-ripened uncooked pressed cheeses as the main sources. It does not say where a sheep cheese heated to 42–45 °C and ripened at least 60 days falls, so do not assume this one is in that exception.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Istrian farmers used cattle for work and kept sheep for milk, cheese and wool. Flocks moved between mountain pastures and coastal winter grazing until the 1960s. Because Istrian summers are hot and dry and sheep milk came only in winter and spring, a hard cheese that kept well developed, one that could be stored and ripened at higher temperatures. The EU single document adds that women developed the method, judging the right temperature by experience before there were thermometers. The Commission entered the name in the register as a PDO on 3 December 2025, after Croatia and Slovenia applied jointly.

  1. [hr-spec] Udruga uzgajivača istarskih koza i ovaca, specification of the PDO 'Istarski ovčji sir / Istrski ovčji sir' (3 May 2023), published by the Croatian Ministry of Agriculturespec
  2. [eambrosia] European Commission, eAmbrosia register entry EUGI00000018746 'Istarski ovčji sir / Istrski ovčji sir' (PDO-HR+SI-02859; registered by Reg. (EU) 2025/2496 of 3 December 2025)gov
  3. [eu-sd2025] European Commission 2025, Single document, 'Istarski ovčji sir / Istrski ovčji sir' (PDO-HR+SI-02859), Official Journal C/2025/4514, 11 August 2025 (Publications Office copy)spec
  4. [anses2022] ANSES 2022, Fromages au lait cru, quels risques pour la santé et comment mieux les prévenir (8 April 2022)gov