Volovec cheese is among the best cheeses produced in Slovakia. According to several prestigious awards this product has received, the judges not only ranked Volovec among the highest quality cheeses but directly named it the best. We talked about its production and characteristics with the head of the Milk-Agro cheese dairy, Ing. Ladislav Juhasz.
Why is the Volovec cheese named so?
It was named after the Volovec hill, located in the main ridge of the Volovské Mountains (altitude 1293 meters) near Rožňava.
Who gave the Volovec cheese its name?
It is an interesting coincidence. Volovec is now produced in Sabinov, but previously it was made in Rožňava since 1993. At that time, the former director of the State Veterinary Administration, MVDr. Ladislav Husár, originally from Sabinov, worked on state property (later Kras-bio) as a retiree. He processed the entire legislation and named the cheese. It was a difficult period for dairies; cooperative dairies were built from state subsidies, and a dairy was established on state property in Rožňava. In the first years, this cheese struggled to establish itself on the market but later became sought after.
Why did it take so long?
Because this type of cheese was previously unknown here. In Switzerland, Germany, and Austria, similar cheeses are produced under names like Appenzeller, Bergkäse, Gruyere, Raclette. All these cheeses can be found in hypermarkets. Our cheese is of the Tilsit type, currently produced in Switzerland under the name Tilsit. Tilsit is a small town in former East Prussia where Dutch cheesemakers introduced the production of this cheese. Later, production moved to Switzerland. The literature calls them Swiss-Dutch type cheeses. This cheese belongs to the family of smear-ripened cheeses.
What does smear-ripened cheese mean?
It means the cheese surface is treated with a solution of smear bacteria that give the cheese its typical taste and protect it from contaminating bacteria. The cheese surface is regularly coated with a smear culture solution and turned.
What is the smear?
It is a salty solution containing smear bacteria. It is not a single type of bacteria but several types, such as Brevibacterium, Corynebacterium, but primarily, to form the smear, yeasts are needed that reduce the acidity of the cheese surface so that smear bacteria can settle and grow. Then the yeasts die off and the smear bacteria take over.
By how much must the acidity of the cheese surface be reduced?
The acidity of the cheese after production is usually around pH 5.2, and it needs to be reduced so that the pH value exceeds 6. At this value, smear bacteria settle and work best.
What happens to those bacteria? Do they remain on the cheese surface and do we consume them?
These bacteria are not harmful but are not intended for consumption; they provide the cheese flavor. Cheese sold in stores also has a so-called rind, which is recommended to be removed before consumption.
How long does it take for such a rind to form?
You need to take care of the cheese for a long time. It must be regularly coated, turned, coated again, and turned until the smear properly grows over the cheese surface to protect it sufficiently from contamination by unwanted microorganisms. The first two weeks are the most vulnerable, during which it must be coated every day; then the coating interval gradually increases.
Is the coating and turning done mechanically?
No, we do it by hand. There are productions worldwide where it is done mechanically, but we do not have such a large production to require a machine. Manual handling also means visual control of the cheese, which helps maintain quality throughout the production and ripening process.
So quality control is a team effort…
For the first two or three years, I was always alert, constantly monitoring what was happening. But now we have such a stabilized production process that we can intervene and correct deviations during production. Among the production workers, I have seven who have been there from the beginning, from the start of the cheese dairy.
So you can rely on them in many ways. Will any of them be your successor?
I don't know because my work is not only about managing people and ensuring orders are fulfilled 100%. It is mainly about getting familiar with the work, dedicating oneself to it, and growing professionally.
You are the unofficial "father" of this type of cheese in Slovakia. Previously, this type of cheese was not produced here at all… There was no such cheesemaking tradition here. We used to produce mainly parenica and korbáčiky. Hard natural cheeses were not so widespread. There were certain places where original Slovak cheese brands were produced, but this particular cheese was not made here.
How does Volovec differ most from other hard cheeses?
Volovec resembles hard cheese but is semi-hard. Semi-hard cheeses are made from low-heated curd, meaning the heating and drying temperature is around 40 degrees. Technologically, it most resembles Gouda or Edam cheeses. The pressing method and ripening method differ, as well as the surface, of course.
That's very interesting, please elaborate… Pressing?
Originally, Tilsit cheese is unpressed, pressed only by its own weight, and is described in literature as unpressed with irregular holes. Each country produces it slightly differently. The Dutch cut the curd into cubes about the size of a walnut. The Swiss cut some to the size of a wheat grain, and ours to 5 x 5 mm. It is a combination of Swiss and Dutch methods. The Dutch introduced production in Tilsit, but since it moved to Switzerland, some technological steps resemble Swiss cheeses more. Originally, Tilsit cheese was unpressed; the Swiss one is pressed.
Ripening method?
The ripening time differs, for example, the cheese we sell under the name Sabinovská tehla is packed and shipped after three to four weeks and requires no further care. We care for Volovec for three months. After three months of ripening, we select certain batches that are qualitatively sufficient and set these cheeses aside for another three months of ripening. This limited edition is sold under the name Volovec Premium. So it is a cheese with excellent quality parameters that can withstand up to six months of ripening during which it does not degrade but its flavor characteristics improve.
What are the physical conditions of ripening?
Temperature 14 °C and relative humidity about 90%.
That's quite humid; how is protection against mold or degradation ensured at such humidity?
Precisely by the mentioned smear. There are other surface protections, such as wax or foil, but Volovec is protected with a salty smear solution.
In production, we saw shelves with ripening cheese loaves. What wood are they made of?
The boards are spruce. Cheese needs to breathe; otherwise, the smear cultures would die. Therefore, the surface material on which the cheese ripens must be porous.
What about oak? Wine ripens in oak barrels…
Oak is aromatic and colors. We also tested red spruce, but ordinary spruce proved best.
We saw cards on the shelves; what is recorded there?
Yes, each cheese batch has a separate card where all operations with that batch are recorded. The card states the milk origin, date, cultures used, daily records of humidity and temperature, and also samples for microbiological laboratory. Only after positive lab results can the cheese be shipped.
Listening to you, we realize that making good cheese is both science and art. We sincerely congratulate you on the awards received and look forward to more interesting information.
