Naxos Cheeses

Legend has it that the god Apollo, who was especially worshiped in Naxos, left his son Aristaeus, a great cheesemaker, there to teach the inhabitants the art of cheese-making.

Decades later, the Naxos thanks to the fertile plains, the abundant waters, the mountains rich in vegetation and the endless pastures, it maintains a very developed livestock, and the Naxos cheeses is one of the most famous in Greece.

In Naxos, as in other Cycladic islands, there is also a long tradition of cheeses based on cow's milk, which goes back to the years of the Venetian era of the islands, when the Catholic rulers introduced these foods and their methods of preparation. The Cyclades is the only region of Greece that has had dairy cows since the 16th century, and therefore has long cheese making of cow's milk.

Today, over 10.000 cows graze in Naxos meadows and more than 100.000 sheep and goats are raised freely in the pastures of the island and especially in its mountainous part, producing about 1.500 tons of cheese per year.

The most famous cheese and ambassador of the island is Naxos gruyere, product PDO since 1996, which requires at least 80% cow's milk and a maximum of 20% sheep and goat and an aging of at least three months. Gruyeres are usually produced in heads of nine kilos, but are also available in other versions.

Another famous cheese of Naxos is male, which according to our folk tradition, is known at least since the 19th century. It got its name because of its properties (hard and strong cheese) and to distinguish it from cheese makers from mizithra, the τυ female cheese that is also made from goat's and sheep's milk. In Naxos the male is made from a combination of sheep and goat milk that is heated and coagulated with rennet. This mass is then drained into basket molds, from which it takes its final shape. After the cheese has drained and acquired the necessary consistency, it is dipped again in whey, smeared with salt (others smear it with the oil morgue) and left to mature for at least three months and then used for table or for rubbing on spaghetti.

Η xinomyzithra is a traditional fresh goat's milk cheese, which coagulates and is prepared within 24 hours from the moment of milking. Naxos xinomyzithra is rich and creamy, with a light sourness reminiscent of yogurt. The day milk is drained and placed in a container, where a small amount of natural rennet is added, but it is not heated. The fermentation follows and then it is drained in bags (fabric) and placed in special containers, the tsimiskia, (shoots) which are usually made of vourla. Xinomyzithra should be consumed within a few days, because it is not preserved.

The sour cream It is produced from xinomyzithra, when it is dried for several weeks until it hardens and is used as table cheese or for rubbing.

From whey (tsiros) which is boiled, the mizithra is produced and when it dries it becomes the cream cheese

Other Naxos cheeses are also goat, the White cheese feta type and oil cheeses.

In addition to the 5 classic cheeses of the island (gruyere, arsenic, xinomyzithra, xynotyri, mizithra) some cheesemakers experiment with more sought after flavors which we will find out by trying their cheeses (EAS Naxos, Naxos Cheese Factory).

The vegetation of the island, watered by the saltiness of the sea, gives the sheep and goat milk and consequently the cheese a special feature. The hot sun, unique throughout the Mediterranean, helps the growth of fermentation fungi and so we have truly unique cheeses.