Taste Atlas has recently published a list of the 100 Best Cheeses in the World and Greece is strongly represented, holding three of the top ten rankings!
Specifically, Naxos Graviera is ranked 2nd, only after the Italian Parmigiano Reggiano. As noted in the online travel guide, “It is a hard table cheese with a refreshing taste and light aroma. The milk used for its production comes from breeds that are traditionally raised on the island, which feed on a diet of local plants and herbs that give their milk a unique flavor “.
Cretan Graviera (photo) is placed 7th, slightly down at the list. According to the TasteAtlas article: “it is produced using traditional methods and ripened in facilities in Hania, Rethymnos, Iraklion, and Lasithi prefectures on the island of Crete”. It is also described as “a hard table cheese with a light-yellow color and firm texture”.
Kalathaki Limnou is in 10th place. It is worth noting that its production procedure is what gave the cheese its name. “The curd is placed in a kalathaki (‘little basket’) for draining and organic acidification, during which the cheese develops its distinctive cylindrical shape. Later, the baskets are immersed in brine to mature for at least two months,” it says.
A total of 23 Greek cheeses is included in TasteAtlas’s Top100, a representative number of the excellence, quality, and exquisite flavor of cheeses produced in Greece.
