La Garrotxa, Catalonia · Spain
Garrotxa.
Garrotxa wears a coat of velvety grey mould over a bone-white paste that's smooth, dense, and faintly flaky. The flavour is all restraint: fresh hazelnuts, cool damp cellar, a herbal whisper, and a clean goat's-milk finish without a trace of barnyard sharpness.
Rate this cheese
The story
How it's made.
Why it tastes that way.
Garrotxa is named for the volcanic, forested comarca of La Garrotxa in northern Catalonia, and its modern story is one of revival: the style had all but vanished until the 1980s, when a generation of neo-rural cheesemakers returned to the land and resurrected it.
Pasteurised goat's milk is made into modest wheels that ripen under a natural bloom of grey-blue mould — the 'pell florida', or flowered skin — for a month or more in humid cellars. Its balance and approachability made it a star of the Catalan cheese renaissance and a fixture on Spanish counters.
Production · spec
- Milk
- Goat · pasteurised
- Family
- Semi-hard
- Rind
- natural
- Age
- 1–3 mo
- Intensity
- 2 / 5
- Texture
- semi-hard, smooth, firm
Tasting profile
What it tastes like.
These bars are a visual read of Garrotxa's flavour and aroma notes, scaled by the cheese's overall intensity — a quick guide, not a lab measurement.
Aroma
Nutrition · per 100 g serving
What's in a wedge.
A 100 g serving — about a finger-thick wedge. Daily values use the FDA 2020 reference of 2,000 kcal. Expect ±5% variation between wheels.
Serve, cut & store
Out of the fridge,
into its prime.
Guidance for semi-hard cheeses — general practice, not a per-wheel measurement.
Rest
Take it out about ≈1 h before serving — cold stiffens the fat and locks up the aromas; cool room temperature is when the flavour shows up.
Cut
Cut thin half-moons or batons from the wedge; trim waxed or inedible rinds as you go.
Store
Wrap leftovers in cheese paper or wax paper — never cling film, which suffocates the rind — and keep them in the warmest part of the fridge.
Rule of thumb: the softer and riper, the longer it needs. Thick pieces need longer than thin — and don't leave cheese out much past two hours.
Pairings · Caseo curated
What goes with Garrotxa.
44 pairings across 7 categories.
Wine
Where to find it
Cheese counters.
Counter listings for Garrotxa are being verified. Check back soon.
Verified counter listings coming soon. Our team updates listings monthly.
Substitutes
No Garrotxa at the counter?
These will play a similar role on the board and in the pan.
Take it with you
Want to remember this one?.
Log it, pair it, and keep your own tasting notes — Caseo is free.
