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Cheese from Portugal, Portalegre district

Queijo Mestiço de Tolosa

Raw ewe and goat milk is mixed in set ratios ('mestiço' means mixed), sieved through a white cloth, warmed to 30 °C and set with animal rennet or cardoon. The curd is squeezed in presses, rests about 15 minutes and is salted there; after 3–4 days the cheeses come out and ripen 3–4 weeks. Between days 20 and 25 a cloth dipped in pepper-powder water is wiped over them.

Fully documentedCheese24 days – 32 daysPGI (Commission Regulation (EC) No 1187/2000, OJ L 133, 6 June 2000)Family: Uncooked or semi-cooked pressed cheese family (tomme, Saint-Nectaire, Reblochon, Morbier, Raclette)

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedNo fixed amounts beyond the milk ratios. Each cheese weighs 150–400 g.
Raw ewe and goat milkMixed in the dairy in ratios of 20:80, 40:60 or 60:40[oj-1999][pereira2026]
Animal rennet or cardoon (Cynara cardunculus)In proportions set by tradition and each maker's own practice[oj-1999]
SaltPut on in the traditional way while the cheeses are still in the presses[oj-1999]
Pepper powder and waterWiped on the tops and sides with a cloth between days 20 and 25 of ripening (the registration says this gives the typical colour and taste)[oj-1999]

Total time across the recorded steps: 24 days – 32 days

Start
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What changes: Starting material: raw ewe and goat milk, sieved through a white cloth

Step 1 of 7
Mix and sieve the milks
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented

Ewe and goat milk are mixed in the correct proportions and sieved through a special white cloth. Output: sieved mixed raw milk.

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 ewe and goat milk is mixed in set ratios ('mestiço' means mixed), sieved through a white cloth, warmed to 30 °C and set with animal rennet or cardoon. The curd is squeezed in presses, rests about 15 minutes and is salted there; after 3–4 days the cheeses come out and ripen 3–4 weeks. Between days 20 and 25 a cloth dipped in pepper-powder water is wiped over them. Made in 7 steps over 24 days – 32 days. The longest step, ripen, takes 21–28 days (European Commission 1999).

Key numbers
Main step21–28 daysSet[oj-1999][pereira2026]Ripen
Temperature30 °CSet[oj-1999]Warm to 30 °C, stirring with a fataça

What makes this one different

The milk is always a mix of ewe and goat in fixed ratios, either rennet or cardoon may set it, and the rind is coloured with pepper water near the end of a short ripening.

Milk
Raw ewe and goat milk in ratios 20:80, 40:60 or 60:40
Composition
Moisture 55–65 % of the fat-free cheese; fat 45–60 % of dry matter
Size
150–400 g; 7–10 cm across, 3–4 cm high

Related ferments

Safety

Made from raw milk with a ripening of 3–4 weeks. The registration says success depends on the cheesemaker's skill in keeping temperature and ventilation right; it gives no pH or safety limits.

History and sources

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

The registration cites dairy experts who wrote about the cheese in 1901 and 1905, and describes making it in the Portalegre district as a way to keep milk in a remote area. The PGI regulation was published in the Official Journal on 6 June 2000.

Starter
The sources we found do not say how its fermentation begins.
  1. [oj-1999] European Commission 1999, Publication of an application for registration, 'Queijo Mestiço de Tolosa' (G/PO/00078/98.11.11), Official Journal of the European Communities C 229, 12 August 1999spec
  2. [pereira2026] Pereira C.D., Campos L., Veiga A., Pereira-Dias S., Henriques M. 2026, Role of cardoon (Cynara spp.) and raw milk microbiota in Iberian PDO and PGI small ruminants' milk cheeses, Foods 15(13):2359 (review; calls it the least studied Portuguese cheese)paper
  3. [ptwiki-tolosa] Portuguese Wikipedia, Tolosa (Nisa) (parish of the municipality of Nisa, Alto Alentejo), read 2026-11wiki
  4. [eambrosia-tolosa] European Commission, eAmbrosia register record for 'Queijo mestiço de Tolosa' (PGI-PT-0078), Regulation (EC) No 1187/2000, OJ L 133, 6 June 2000gov