🧀 Arseniko Naxou

Arseniko Naxou is a hard, spicy Greek cheese with a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), registered in the EU in 2017. It is made on the island of Naxos from the sheep and goat milk of local flocks.

Where it is made. Naxos is the largest of the Cyclades, with mountain pastures where sheep and goats have been kept for a very long time. The same island also gives the cow-milk Graviera Naxou.

How it is made. The milk is coagulated with rennet, the curd is drained and shaped into round cheeses, salted and aged for a long time. Arseniko ripens for at least 3 months and becomes hard and sharp. The name means “male” in Greek, a hint at the cheese's strong, assertive character.

Taste and texture. The rind is hard; the paste is white to pale yellow, dense and brittle. The flavour is salty and piquant, with a clear aroma of sheep and goat milk.

How to eat it. Slice it thinly or break off pieces as a snack, grate it over pasta and bakes, or serve it with olives, bread and red or full-bodied white wine (see Wine and cheese). It belongs to the Hard cheeses group.

Arseniko Naxou belongs to the sections Greek cheeses and Protected cheese names; its raw materials are sheep milk and goat milk.

Why it matters to you. Arseniko Naxou is one of the newest Greek PDO cheeses, a traditional product of the island's small dairies. The name is protected in the EU, so genuine Arseniko comes only from Naxos.