🧀 Formaella Arachovas Parnassou

Formaella Arachovas Parnassou is a semi-hard Greek cheese from the mountain country of Arachova on Parnassus, in Boeotia prefecture. It is made only from sheep's or goat's milk or a mix of the two, and it is held twice in hot whey while in its moulds. The name has been protected in the EU as a PDO since 1996. ¹³

How it is made. The milk is coagulated at about 32 °C for around two hours. The curd is heated to 40 °C for 10 minutes and divided into large pieces to fit special moulds, hoops or woven baskets. The filled moulds are lowered into whey at 60 °C for an hour, then lifted out, turned over and held for another hour in whey at 75–80 °C. ³

What comes next. After the whey, the cheese is salted, dried for 24 hours, taken out of the moulds and dried on shelves for another 4 days. The summary specification names no long maturing: its description of the process ends with the drying. ³

Where it comes from. The cheese has been made in the mountain country of Arachova for at least a hundred years. It is especially prized by local people and by tourists on their way to the archaeological site at Delphi and the Parnassus ski centre. The milk comes from the sheep and goat breeds traditionally kept here; they are adapted to the mountains and feed on local plants. ³

Why it matters to you. Look for the words Formaella Arachovas Parnassou PDO, the control mark FOR, a serial number and the production date. The long name matters: the short word formaella offers no guarantee. Tourists come across it on the road to Delphi and Parnassus, because this is the local cheese of the area. ³