Queso Arzúa-Ulloa

Arzúa-Ulloa is a cow's milk cheese produced in the central districts of Galicia, Spain, in a defined area spanning municipalities of A Coruña, Lugo, and Pontevedra. The designation covers a standard variety with a minimum maturation of six days, a farm-manufactured variant, and a cured variant requiring at least six months of maturation.

About this designation

Registered as a PDO under file number PDO-ES-0497, with EU protection dating from 27 September 2005 and eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000013653, Arzúa-Ulloa is produced from raw or pasteurised cow's milk in the central districts of Galicia, an area characterised by numerous open valleys, abundant rainfall of around 1 200 to 1 700 mm annually, and average temperatures slightly below 12 °C, most of it lying above 300 metres above sea level. The production process encompasses coagulation, cutting and washing of the curd, moulding, pressing, salting, and maturation. The standard Arzúa-Ulloa must mature for at least six days; the cured variant, Arzúa-Ulloa curado, must mature for at least six months. The finished standard cheese must meet analytical minima including fat content of at least 45 % of dry matter, protein of at least 35 % of dry matter, and dry matter of at least 45 %, with pH between 5,0 and 5,5. The farm-manufactured variant, Arzúa-Ulloa de Granja, must be made exclusively from milk sourced from cows on the farm where the cheese is produced. Each certified cheese must carry a designation label approved and issued by the inspection body, the Instituto Galego da Calidade Alimentaria (INGACAL), bearing a sequential alphanumeric code and the official logo. Both the commercial label and the designation label must bear the words 'Denominación de Origen Protegida "Arzúa-Ulloa"' and must indicate whether raw or pasteurised milk was used.

Source: The register document this entry was written from · retrieved August 26, 2026

Distinctive facts

• Registered as a PDO on 27 September 2005 under file number PDO-ES-0497 (eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000013653).
• The cured variant, Arzúa-Ulloa curado, requires a maturation period of at least six months; the standard variety requires at least six days.
• The specification requires curd washing during production, a technique the specification notes was unheard of in neighbouring cheese-making areas.
• Each certified cheese must carry a designation label issued by INGACAL bearing a sequential alphanumeric code and the official logo of the Designation of Origin.

Tasting notes

Galician cow's milk soft pressed cheese DOP. Pale ivory paste, soft buttery texture, mild fresh flavor.

HoReCa use

Galician tabla de quesos; melted in empanadas.

Packaging

• wheel-full-500g-3kg
• wedge-vacuum-200g