ENGLISH

HISTORY

Casín cheese, is named Caso, municipality located in the Natural Park

Networks (Biosphere Reserve) Principality of Asturias. The cheesemaking not own

only in this county, but also Sobrescobio and Piloña, municipalities located in

north and west of Caso.

Livestock, cheese production base, is presented as the activity fundamental economic area.

In this environment, the cow Asturian mountain or Casina, a native of the place, very effective in the use of tall grasses, hardy breed, of small size, but of excellent meat, perfectly adapted for the use of mountain pastures and reaching steep in places where food for other races is impossible, was formerly most interesting race since played all three skills (meat, milk, work), importance today has been, somewhat neglected, orienting primarily in the production of meat, although in the area, it still using their milk as raw material for the manufacture of cheese Casín.

The origin of the cheese, is unknown, but is believed to be one of the oldest in Spain and the world, not only for the documentary references which place in the fourteenth century but by the unusual technique of kneading the curd.

Enric Canut "In the land of 100 cheeses", Barcelona 2000, argues that "the

Casín cheese, by their means of production and rustic utensils used may be one of the oldest in Spain and part of that set of cheeses made in the Cantabrian Mountains which mixes directly with the Neolithic and early settlers who arrived in the backbone of the Peninsula. "

According to legend, it seems that the king Don Pelayo cheese liked his hosts and took them as refreshment. It is said that after the Battle of Covadonga in 713, the "casinos" (inhabitants of Caso) gave him a big cheese that had to be transported in a car in the country, drawn by casinos. Both Don Pelayo liked this gift, which granted nobility to all residents.

This cheese can be of Roman origin, because according to Pliny, the Caseus luniensis

(moon-shaped) can weigh 500 pounds and this cheese Casín, which has come down to us, is done in a way so original, unique in the world, which could be given the size you want by kneading the consolidated and cheeses in very primitive machines.

The written testimonies of cheese production in the area date back to the fourteenth century.

Manufacturing process:

The cheese Casín is  woman made, the diligence, care and the care required by their development require hands and female maternal instinct, and so has been passed the secrets of its preparation, Casinas women always learned from their mothers and grandmothers.

The process begins "when milk is blood temperature" when, casting drop in the back of his hand, "do not notice and neither cold nor hot." This description of an artisan Casina unscientific, without other security than the repetition of the experience across generations, not to say or not, that's nearly 37 degrees the human body are the ideal temperature to start the curd. After draining the curd, allowed to dry wrapped in a cloth, not more than fifteen days. Once this process is passed through the

rabilar machine and are formed gorollos, frustoconical portions to be re rabilar (spend per roll), repeating the process until seven times. Pastas thereby getting drier and compact, which left a more durable product without requiring therefore the pressing. After the last turn, it gives the cheese the final form, which is printed with wooden frames with figures in relief. All cheeses are marked with a die bearing the logo of each producer, another sign Casín Cheese identity, that gives specificity and

born as a result of community development techniques exploit allowing limited material resources (kneading machine rabilar) or streamline costly production steps. In these tasks were handled several artisans cheeses had to differentiate, the solution to this problem was to identify each piece with a hallmark that would quickly identify the owner.

They used two types of punches, called frames or dies, for printing on the cheese. The first on the curd semi "gorollo" will be called ochavau, a wooden cylindrical or fusiform decorated at the ends with simple symbols, radials, rosettes or Initial artisan, to be marked on elgorollo amassed many times as received . Thus, in addition to being recognized by the personal mark of the artisan, a record is kept that allows

control the degree of preparation of the piece counting the number of pugs.

The second seal, as used on the finished cheese, in order to decorate and identify the production, will be larger and more complex. You will have a variety of forms that go from the rectangular to the discoidal through a series of intermediate forms and shape the final recorded. After a healing two or three months in a cool, ventilated, the cheese is ready to be consumed.

The Casín is a semi-hard cheese, semi-hard ripened to form cylindrical curing

irregular discoidal, with a face etched with floral, geometric, symbols or names of the manufacturer. It is about 10-20 cm. in diameter and 4-7 cm. tall and weighs between 250 and 1000 grams.

The bark is smooth and soft, it can be said that has no bark, since, through successive kneaded, maturation is uniformly and simultaneously inside and outside, the outside and inside form a compact mass and tied, clean, dry, or slightly oily.

Creamy yellow with dark whitish shades.

Pasta firm, friable, medium hard to hard, yellowing without eyes. Crumbly cutting.

Paladar.Aroma buttery texture to strong and powerful.

The taste depends on the production process, especially the times that the machine knead rabilar: the very worked has a pungent, spicy, strong, difficult for unaccustomed palates and has the pungent aroma and rustic-flavored butter time: the less worked has the same flavor, although discount intensity. In any case, strong flavor, large, persistent, spicy and slightly bitter finish. Strong aftertaste.

It has a high nutritional value for their protein content (24.1%), calcium and fat.

In a cheese board the Casín be located towards the end in the place reserved for cheeses strong smell and taste.

Eat AS "THE OLD WORLD"

Being cold cheese is cut, as

indicates the image sheet.

These sheets are divided into rectangles

1 to 2 cm for subsequent tasting temperature

temperature (between 18 ° and 20 °)

It is advisable to keep the cheese in

refrigerator (at the bottom) to preserve

Direct air.

OUR CHEESE

• Casín 3 rabiladas

• Pasta mixed matured

• Cow milk, whole raw

• Geographic Area: Bueres - Caso - Asturias

NATURE NETWORK. BIOSPHERE RESERVE

elaboration

enzymatic Coagulation

Minimum Maturity 61 days

Rabilada mass thrice

Salado hand on curd

sensory analysis

No bark, smooth dough of one color, yellow butter.

Appears at the base of the seal cheese dairy.

High elasticity with excellent moisture point.

Aroma strong and powerful to cow butter dissolves into heat, wrapped in

toasted nuts.

First taste is buttery, smooth and strong.

Balanced on the palate.

Persistent flavor, its aftertaste is marked by the constant reminder of butter and

aftertaste its delicate finish.

Casín 2 rabiladas

• Pasta mixed matured

• Cow milk, whole raw

• Geographic Area: Bueres - Caso - Asturias

NATURE NETWORK. BIOSPHERE RESERVE

elaboration

Coagulation enzyme.

Minimum Maturity 61 days

Mass twice rabilada

Salado hand on curd

sensory analysis

No bark, smooth dough, the same color, ivory white, slightly yellowish.

Appears at the base of the seal cheese dairy.

Uniform mass.

First blow strong aromatic, butter cow and a bottom shell nuts.

First taste buttery, with great force. It manifests in the end an itch and

strength.

Strong flavor, spicy, pleasant but dense, slightly salty.