Valdivieso Trufado: Soria truffle at the heart of a La Mancha sheep’s milk cheese

Truffle usually reaches cheese like a perfume: it is stirred into the milk, grated on top or infused until everything tastes the same. Valdivieso Trufado does the opposite. It puts Soria black truffle in a single vein at the centre of the wheel and lets the sheep’s milk cheese do the rest.

An Italian classic with a La Mancha accent

The producer explains where the idea comes from: moliterno al tartufo, the Italian sheep’s milk cheese in which the truffle is laid on the curd to form a single central vein. With that arrangement, the flavour spreads through the whole paste without covering the taste of the milk. Valdivieso has brought it onto its own ground, which is La Mancha: pasteurised La Mancha sheep’s milk, about three months of ageing and an edible rind.

A dairy passed from grandfather to grandson

Valdivieso is an estate in Alcázar de San Juan, in Ciudad Real. The current project is led by Luis, a young man from La Mancha who trained between London and Paris and came home to relaunch the dairy his grandfather started more than 50 years ago. The flock’s La Mancha sheep feed on the estate’s own pastures, and the traditional Manchego recipe is kept. Luis is now working on improving the facilities and introducing innovative practices.

The house’s flagship cheese is its Manchego PDO. The truffled version is, in the producer’s words, a sophisticated take on that same cheese: elegant and restrained with the truffle.

Why the truffle comes from Soria

Spain is the world’s leading producer of black truffle, and Soria is one of its benchmark areas, with its own fair in Abejar and a season that runs, roughly, from November to March. A word of honesty is in order here: according to the product sheet, the cheese contains Soria truffle pâté, not sliced fresh truffle.

How to eat it

It comes ready to eat. Take it out of the fridge a while beforehand so the truffle comes through more, but always store it below 8 °C. Serve it in wedges, with the rind if you like it, on bread or thin toast. Pear or apple gives a contrast, and a full-bodied white or a young red goes well alongside. If you take it into the kitchen, melted over scrambled eggs for example, the vein spreads by itself.

What to know before buying it

• It is sold in 250 g, 500 g and 1 kg pieces.
• Ingredients: pasteurised sheep’s milk, rennet, cultures, salt, Soria truffle pâté and calcium chloride.
• It provides 456 kcal and 1.5 g of salt per 100 g.
• The product sheet does not recommend it for people with a milk allergy or lactose intolerance.
• As with any cheese, if you are pregnant or have a weakened immune system, check with your doctor first.

How much it costs

The 250 g piece costs around €10.50. This is an approximate price: it changes with the seller, the size and the moment, so it is worth comparing before you buy.

Valdivieso Trufado is a cheese of medium intensity, made for anyone who wants to try truffle in cheese without it dominating everything. Its bet is restraint: a vein, not a bath.