Visit top cheese farms in Menorca

Table of Contents

1. General Information
2. Visit the best traditional cheese-making dairies
3. Ideal visits for children: Farm animals
4. Menorcan cheese tasting
5. See how they make Mahón-Menorca cheese
6. Minorcan cheese
7. Mahon-Menorca cheese quality controls
8. Cooking recipes with cheese from Menorca
9. How much does Mahón Menorca cheese cost

General Information

In this article I explain everything you may want to know about visiting artisanal cheese production farms in Menorca.

If you are interested in cheese and want to visit a family-run cheese factory in the countryside, see the animals, taste different types of Menorcan cheese or simply buy Mahón-Menorca cheese vacuum packed, this is the article you were looking for.

In this article about the most authentic cheese farms on the island, you will find all the information about these traditional farms, where to find them, when it is best to visit them and much more.

Visiting a traditional cheese factory is a great way to do cultural tourism during your holidays in Menorca, and here I explain everything you need to know about it.

Sometimes these farmhouses offer guided tours of the cheese factory for families or small groups.

On each of the pages dedicated to the best traditional cheese farms in Menorca that you will find above there is one or more means of contact so that you can let them know that you are going to visit them, as well as to book any experiences they may offer, such as:

• Visit the farm and the facilities
• See how the master cheesemakers make soft cheese
• Visit the farm animals
• Book a tasting of cheese and local products for your family or friends
• Experience the cheese making with your own hands (ideal for families with children)
• ...or simply buy cheese at the dairy where it was produced

Ideal visit for children: Farm Animals

These traditional dairies are basically family farms in the Menorcan countryside.

These farms have been purely rural for centuries, although in recent decades some of them have adapted their facilities to receive visits from tourists and customers, so they have a place to park, shop , bathrooms and facilities prepared for visitors.

Despite of this, the selection of traditional dairies listed above on this page have not lost an iota of their traditional charm or of its rural atmosphere.

These farmhouses are in the countryside, and normally the cows are just a few steps from the house. Sometimes the cows are in the shed, other times they are eating grass in the fields.

When visiting these dairies, children can see chickens, pigs, horses, donkeys, sheep or goats, which is a great experience for children, especially those who live in big cities.

Cheese tasting

In almost all of this type of dairies they offer a tasting of their cheeses and sausages.

You can book a tasting of cheese and other local products for a certain price. The prices of these tastings vary depending on the type and quantity of food that they include. Sometimes they include bread made on the farm, typical sausages, such as sobrasada or carnixua, or even local wine.

The main dish of these tastings is cheese, which is usually served on three plates. The semi-cured cheese, cured cheese and Mahón-Menorca aged cheese.

It is always the same cheese, but the different curing periods give it a very different flavour, intensity and texture.

Sometimes it is even allowed to combine cheese samples with jams or honey.

It should also be mentioned that even if a tasting like the one mentioned above is not contracted, it is customary for the master cheesemaker to allow visitors to try samples of various cheeses or sausages before buying them.

See how they make Mahón-Menorca cheese

Most of these traditional cheese dairies allow tourists who have decided to visit them on the right day and time to see how Menorca cheese is manufactured in an artisanal way.

This "show" in which you can see how the cheese is produced generally takes place between 10 and 11 in the morning. In any case, it is important to contact with the cheese farm that you have decided to visit to inform you directly about the day and time of making the cheese.

Important, contact the cheese factory first to let them know about your visit.

Mahon-Menorca cheese

Mahon-Menorca cheese is an uncooked cow’s milk cheese produced exclusively in Menorca.

This cheese is regulated by a Protected Designation of Origin Council that watches over its manufacturing procedures and its quality.

This is a cheese made according to ancient recipes and methods, which have become law.

There are historical mentions in which the Greeks, Carthaginians and Arabs appreciated Menorcan cheese.

And the fact is that Menorca cheese has been praised throughout its history, especially in times of boom, such as when in the 18th century four ships were dedicated exclusively to transporting cheese from the port of Mahón to important coastal cities of the western Mediterranean.

Factors such as:

• the relatively high salinity of the grazing fields due to the strong insular wind combined with the proximity of the sea
• the great biological richness of the vegetation of these grazing fields, an effect that the constant arrival of peoples to the island since time immemorial
• milk curdled at low temperature + is salted by immersion
• and special cured, according to island customs (based on olive oil and red paprika)

... have turned this gastronomic marvel into a Minorcan cultural reference.

The price of Mahón-Menorca cheese depends on the curing time of each piece.

As a piece of cheese can lose up to 40% of its weight throughout the curing period, the price of a kilogram of Mahón-Menorca cheese increases at the same level as its degree of maturation.

Mahon-Menorca cheese quality controls

Both the milk, as well as the facilities and the very cows of each of the farms and dairies that produce Mahón-Menorca cheese with Denomination of Origin are subject to all kinds of regular controls.

To be more specific:

• Each of these companies is audited around 3 times a year
• The milk from each dairy is analyzed 5 times a month
• The water and the salt shaker used to generate the rennet are analyzed approximately every day.
• Cheese analyses, surface analyses, and of course disease tests, are also done regularly.
• The government keeps an up-to-date record of the number of cows each farm has and the number of pieces of cheese it produces.
• Furthermore, these dairy farms must regularly contract the services of veterinarians for matters such as vaccination control and bovine reproduction.
• The use of antibiotics and other medications is highly controlled and increasingly restricted.

In conclusion, it is important to point out that although all these measures represent a great burden for the owners of these cheese productions and increase the final price of the product, they are clearly and ultimately a guarantee of the very high quality standards of this fabulous cheese.

Cooking recipes with cheese from Menorca

Cheese as a gastronomic tool has an infinite number of uses. Among those that I, as a Menorcan, know and enjoy, I can recommend the following:

• Soft cheese (less than 2 weeks old) pan-fried with olive oil
• Semi-cured cheese sandwich with fried sobrassada
• Classic spaghetti with minced meat and tomato sauce au gratin with cured or aged cheese
• Little plate of cured cheese with a glass of white wine

Beyond these exquisite homemade recipes with Mahón-Menorca cheese, there are professional chefs capable of preparing true gastronomic works of art with this product. Many restaurants in Menorca offer the traditional baked stuffed aubergine au gratin with semi-cured cheese, among other specialties of each establishment.

As a last note, I invite you to study the list of official Mahón-Menorca cheese recipes and promoted by the Menorca Denomination of Origin Regulatory Council. Click here to see the list of the best dishes with their recipes and method of preparation.

Mahon-Menorca cheese price

Please note that these prices are approximate and that they vary slightly depending on each producer, as well as depending on factors such as inflation.

• Soft cheese: €14/kg
• Semi-cured cheese: €16/kg
• Cured cheese: €21/kg
• Aged cheese: €25/kg