Cherni Vit (cheese)
Encyclopedia
Cherni Vit is a Bulgaria
n green cheese
variety exclusively produced in and around the village of Cherni Vit in Teteven Municipality
, Lovech Province
. Made from sheep milk
, Cherni Vit cheese owes the colour of its crust and its characteristic taste to the formation of mold. This occurs naturally due to the specific conditions in the region and the technology of production. Produced for centuries, Cherni Vit cheese was nearly extinct in the 2000s until it was rediscovered and popularised by Slow Food
representatives.
, for several centuries. However, in the past the mold was considered poisonous by the locals, who would often throw mouldy batches of cheese away, considering it an undesired side effect of cheese production. Although it was very popular in the village in the mid-20th century, in the 1970s green cheese quickly began to disappear due to the replacement of the wooden casks required for the molding with plastic cans. By the early 21st century, Cherni Vit green cheese had ceased production and all but disappeared.
In 2007, the mayor of Cherni Vit, Tsvetan Dimitrov, was contacted by Italian
representatives of the Slow Food
movement who enquired about traditional dishes from the village which were in danger of disappearing. Eventually, Dimitrov discovered a single matchbox
-sized piece of green cheese that was preserved in the cellar of an elderly couple who lived in the highlands above the village. The Italians were impressed with the green cheese and it was presented at the international festival in Bra to a great reception. According to Slow Food representatives, Cherni Vit cheese is the only traditional mold cheese in the Balkans
.
As of 2009, Cherni Vit green cheese is not commercially available in Bulgaria or commercially exported from the country. This is due to administrative hindrances which prohibit farms from the direct sale of dairy products unless they are approved by the veterinary services.
using a basic technology. The specific natural and weather conditions of the Balkan Mountains near the village of Cherni Vit are very important for its production. It is a very soft cheese with a dense, hot taste and a specific, rich aroma. The cheese is silvery white on the inside and covered by a naturally-formed green mold
crust. Essentially, Cherni Vit cheese is a variety of white brine cheese (sirene
) modified by the growth of mold.
Cherni Vit green cheese grows in wooden casks, which allow part of the brine
to evaporate through the wood, contributing to the formation of a mold crust. Other factors that contribute to the taste of the cheese are the air humidity, the low winter temperatures in Cherni Vit and the significant amplitude between day and night temperature. The cheese also has a protein
content that is different from that of cheeses from other Bulgarian regions. Milk from the Karakachan Sheep and the aboriginal Teteven Sheep breeds is used for the preparation of the cheese.
The process of producing Cherni Vit cheese begins in the summer (after Saint George's Day), when sheep are taken by shepherds to high mountain pastures. When the sheep are brought back in September or October, the cheese, already placed in wooden casks, is stored in humid cellars in the village, at a temperature of 10 to 12 °C (50 to 53.6 °F). Mold develops on the surface of the cheese only after the casks are opened.
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
n green cheese
Green cheese
Green cheese is a name applied to several varieties of cheese that are green in colour. The term was first used in English to mean fresh cheese, not thoroughly dried. The Oxford English Dictionary gives a reference from the year 1542 of the four sorts of cheese...
variety exclusively produced in and around the village of Cherni Vit in Teteven Municipality
Teteven Municipality
Teteven Municipality is a municipality in Lovech Province, Central-North Bulgaria, located from the northern slopes of the central Stara planina mountain to the area of the Fore-Balkan...
, Lovech Province
Lovech Province
Lovech Province is one of the 28 provinces of Bulgaria, lying at the northern centre of the country. It is named after its main city - Lovech. As of December 2009, the population of the area is 151,153.-Municipalities:...
. Made from sheep milk
Sheep milk
Sheep's milk is the milk of domestic sheep. Though not widely drunk in any modern culture, sheep's milk is commonly used to make cultured dairy products. Well-known cheeses made from sheep milk include the Feta of Greece, Roquefort of France, Manchego from Spain, the Pecorino Romano , the Pecorino...
, Cherni Vit cheese owes the colour of its crust and its characteristic taste to the formation of mold. This occurs naturally due to the specific conditions in the region and the technology of production. Produced for centuries, Cherni Vit cheese was nearly extinct in the 2000s until it was rediscovered and popularised by Slow Food
Slow Food
Slow Food is an international movement founded by Carlo Petrini in 1986. Promoted as an alternative to fast food, it strives to preserve traditional and regional cuisine and encourages farming of plants, seeds and livestock characteristic of the local ecosystem. It was the first established part of...
representatives.
History
Cherni Vit cheese has been continuously produced in Cherni Vit, a village at the northern foot of the Balkan MountainsBalkan Mountains
The Balkan mountain range is a mountain range in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula. The Balkan range runs 560 km from the Vrashka Chuka Peak on the border between Bulgaria and eastern Serbia eastward through central Bulgaria to Cape Emine on the Black Sea...
, for several centuries. However, in the past the mold was considered poisonous by the locals, who would often throw mouldy batches of cheese away, considering it an undesired side effect of cheese production. Although it was very popular in the village in the mid-20th century, in the 1970s green cheese quickly began to disappear due to the replacement of the wooden casks required for the molding with plastic cans. By the early 21st century, Cherni Vit green cheese had ceased production and all but disappeared.
In 2007, the mayor of Cherni Vit, Tsvetan Dimitrov, was contacted by Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
representatives of the Slow Food
Slow Food
Slow Food is an international movement founded by Carlo Petrini in 1986. Promoted as an alternative to fast food, it strives to preserve traditional and regional cuisine and encourages farming of plants, seeds and livestock characteristic of the local ecosystem. It was the first established part of...
movement who enquired about traditional dishes from the village which were in danger of disappearing. Eventually, Dimitrov discovered a single matchbox
Matchbox
A matchbox is a box made of cardboard or thin wood designed to hold matches. It usually has a coarse striking surface on one edge for lighting the matches contained inside....
-sized piece of green cheese that was preserved in the cellar of an elderly couple who lived in the highlands above the village. The Italians were impressed with the green cheese and it was presented at the international festival in Bra to a great reception. According to Slow Food representatives, Cherni Vit cheese is the only traditional mold cheese in the Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
.
As of 2009, Cherni Vit green cheese is not commercially available in Bulgaria or commercially exported from the country. This is due to administrative hindrances which prohibit farms from the direct sale of dairy products unless they are approved by the veterinary services.
Description
The Cherni Vit cheese variety is made from sheep milkSheep milk
Sheep's milk is the milk of domestic sheep. Though not widely drunk in any modern culture, sheep's milk is commonly used to make cultured dairy products. Well-known cheeses made from sheep milk include the Feta of Greece, Roquefort of France, Manchego from Spain, the Pecorino Romano , the Pecorino...
using a basic technology. The specific natural and weather conditions of the Balkan Mountains near the village of Cherni Vit are very important for its production. It is a very soft cheese with a dense, hot taste and a specific, rich aroma. The cheese is silvery white on the inside and covered by a naturally-formed green mold
Mold
Molds are fungi that grow in the form of multicellular filaments called hyphae. Molds are not considered to be microbes but microscopic fungi that grow as single cells called yeasts...
crust. Essentially, Cherni Vit cheese is a variety of white brine cheese (sirene
Sirene
Sirene/ Sirenje or known as "white brine sirene" .Salads: Shopska salad with tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, onions and sirene. Ovcharska salad with the above mentioned vegetables, cheese, ham, boiled eggs and olives. Tomatoes with sirene is a traditional light salad during the summer.Eggs:...
) modified by the growth of mold.
Cherni Vit green cheese grows in wooden casks, which allow part of the brine
Brine
Brine is water, saturated or nearly saturated with salt .Brine is used to preserve vegetables, fruit, fish, and meat, in a process known as brining . Brine is also commonly used to age Halloumi and Feta cheeses, or for pickling foodstuffs, as a means of preserving them...
to evaporate through the wood, contributing to the formation of a mold crust. Other factors that contribute to the taste of the cheese are the air humidity, the low winter temperatures in Cherni Vit and the significant amplitude between day and night temperature. The cheese also has a protein
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
content that is different from that of cheeses from other Bulgarian regions. Milk from the Karakachan Sheep and the aboriginal Teteven Sheep breeds is used for the preparation of the cheese.
The process of producing Cherni Vit cheese begins in the summer (after Saint George's Day), when sheep are taken by shepherds to high mountain pastures. When the sheep are brought back in September or October, the cheese, already placed in wooden casks, is stored in humid cellars in the village, at a temperature of 10 to 12 °C (50 to 53.6 °F). Mold develops on the surface of the cheese only after the casks are opened.