Querétaro prepares to celebrate its extensive range of artisanal cheese

The best of Mexico’s artisanal aged cheeses and other food products will be celebrated at a cheese festival in Querétaro later this month.

The state produces the widest variety of aged cheeses in the country, and is Mexico’s biggest producer of sheep milk cheese.

The first annual Festival Viva El Queso at the Cava Bocanegra cheese cellar in Tequisquiapan will host 25 artisanal cheesemakers, 11 from Querétaro and the others from Morelos, Puebla, Guanajuato, Chiapas and México state.

Festival visitors will be able to sample a wide variety of aged cheeses and learn about how they are made at the numerous conferences and workshops on the festival agenda.

There will also be tastings focused on pairing the cheeses with regional wines, artisanal beers, mezcal and chocolate.

In addition to cheeses, visitors can also shop for other products such as serrano ham, cold cuts, honey and chocolate.

A panel of over 22 chef judges will determine the best artisanal cheeses from Querétaro.

The festival will take place on November 30 and December 1. Pre-sale tickets cost 350 pesos (US $18) per day, and can be bought on the Cava Bocanegra website. The price goes up to 400 pesos on the day of the festival.

Source: El Universal (sp)