Portugal is at the number 1 spot for best sheep milk cheese in the world according to Taste Atlas. The website has released a new, updated list where Portugal has been ranked first place for top cheese. These rankings were updated at the start of this month, November.

Best Cheese Available In Portugal

Taste Atlas has updated its list of best cheese in November. According to them, the top-quality cheese in the entire world is Queijo Serra da Estrela. The Serra da Estrela cheese is considered the softest cheese. It is made from sheep’s milk, particularly from the two breeds: Churra Mondegueira and Bordaleira Serra da Estrela. The process of milking is hand-done. After the milk is collected in a bucket, it is heated. This heated milk is then salted and curdled using the thistle extract. TasteAtlas states:

The curd is formed into cheeses, which are left to ripen in humid and cold conditions. The cheese has a creamy, semi-soft interior that is yellowish-white in color, while its flavor is clean, sweet, and slightly sour. This cheese is Portugal’s oldest, most traditional food product with international acclaim. Queijo Serra da Estrela is the best available in Portugal. Currently, the list ranks the country at the number 1 spot for the best cheese in the world.

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Consumed As Appetizer Or Dessert

Citizens of Portugal like to eat this cheese with Broa bread and wines like Port, Ruby Port, Tawny Port, and Mencía. This kind of cheese dates back to many years in the history of Portugal. Back in the 13^th century, the Portuguese king opened a cheese market in Celorico da Beira. This location lies in the mountain range of Serra da Estrela. This place still produces cheese. It is reported that the cheese was even present on some of the first ships that went to sail around the world. Taste Atlas states:

Serra da Estrela is traditionally consumed as an appetizer or dessert, and it pairs well with regional wines from the Dão region and broa—local cornbread. A product rich in tradition and culture, Serra da Estrela cheese is the pride of the region, and it is considered the father of all sheep cheeses in Portugal.

Queijo de Azeitão Cheese

The Taste Atlas rankings consist of 100 cheeses all around the world. Portugal also appears in the 7^th place according to the list. The Azeitão cheese is ranked 7^th place and is best found in Palmela, Portugal. This cheese goes all the way back to the 19^th century. The origin of this kind of cheese was done when Gasper Henriques de Paiva emigrated to Azeitão. Taste Atlas states:

De Paiva’s Azeitão cheeses quickly became famous throughout Portugal, winning several awards at agricultural fairs. The milk for this cheese is taken from sheep that graze on natural vegetation in the pastures of Azeitão. The sheep are milked manually, and the milk is mixed with the extract of a local variety of thistle to start the curdling process instead of animal rennet, meaning the cheese is 100% vegetarian.

The Queijo de Azeitão cheese is best liked with three kinds of wines: Port, Moscatel de Setúbal, and Mencía. It is found in the Palmela region in Portugal.

Queijo Serpa

Serpa is another type of cheese that is mentioned in the Taste Atlas list. Serpa cheese stands at the 22^th spot in the list and it can also be found in Portugal. The Taste Atlas states:

Produced in the district of Beja in eastern Portugal, Serpa is a semi-soft sheep’s milk cheese that’s similar to Pecorino. Instead of animal rennet, Serpa is curdled using an extract made from a species of thistle that grows in the countryside of Alentejo.

Some of the other notable types of cheese are from Évora, saloio, cheese from Beira Baixa, Nisa, Terrincho, and curd cheese from Serra da Estrela. After Serra da Estrela cheese, the 2^nd spot in the list is taken by Graviera Kritis cheese from Greece and the 3^rd spot is taken by Pecorino Romano cheese from Italy.

Best Cheese Ranking In The World

1. Queijo Serra da Estrela (Portugal)
2. Graviera Kritis (Crete, Greece)
3. Pecorino Romano (Sardinia, Italy)
4. Pecorino Sardo (Sardinia, Italy)
5. Pecorino Toscano (Tuscany, Italy)
6. Kefalograviera (Epirus, Greece)
7. Queijo de Azeitão (Palmela, Portugal)
8. Redykołka (Podhale, Poland)
9. Kalathaki Limnou (Lemnos, Greece)
10. Sfela (Messinia, Greece)
11. Graviera Agrafon (Thessaly, Greece)
12. Ovčí Salašnícky Údený Syr (Slovakia)
13. Queso Manchego (Castilla-La Mancha, Spain)
14. Kefalotyri (Greece)
15. Pag cheese (Paški sir) (PAG, Croatia)
16. Bundz (Bodhale, Poland)
17. Pecorino Siciliano (Sicily, Italy)
18. Galotyri (Thessaly, Greece)
19. Ladotyri Mytilinis (Lesbos, Greece)
20. Manchego Viejo (Castilla-La Mancha, Spain)
21. Krasotyri (KOS, Greece)
22. Queijo Serpa (Serpa, Portugal)
23. Feta (Greece)
24. Myzithra (Crete, Greece)
25. Oscypek (Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland)

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