The Cottage Cheese and Honey Fair

A legendary dessert in As Neves

The tradition of cottage cheese in As Neves dates back to the Middle Ages. The neighbours, according to the first written testimonies from the 12th century, entertained with this delicious product the pilgrims on the route between Portugal and A Franqueira, today known as Sendeiro dos Frades. In 2013 the City Council managed to get the fair of this dessert seasoned with honey from O Condado declared a Festivity of Tourist Interest in Galicia. On Good Friday more than 12,000 people come together to taste it.

The combination of curd cheese and honey has given rise to an exquisite dessert of supreme quality that attracts thousands of diners, most of them from Galicia and northern Portugal, to the festival that has been held every year in As Neves since 1991. Already in the morning, this delicacy is served, along with other handmade products, in the central square of this town, and both the catering establishments and the food shops join in the event, in which there is no shortage of musical performances.

Handmade production

Today the cooperative company packages sixteen tonnes of curd cheese (and ten tonnes of honey), using only cow's milk produced in Galicia and lactic ferments without preservatives or stabilisers.

The tasting starts at midday and the cottage cheese is served in commemorative earthenware pots. Attendees accompany the product with wines from As Neves, choosing between whites (Albariños and Condado de Tea) and reds (Rubiós). The region of O Condado offers excellent conditions, with sunny terraces sheltered from the north wind, for the cultivation of albariño, loureiro, treixadura, caíño, espadeiro and retinto.

The Cottage Cheese and Honey Fair began 26 years ago, with the collaboration between the Town Council and the Association of Rural Women. This alliance continued until 2002, when it was taken over by the Sociedade Cooperativa Agraria Condado-Paradanta, founded in 1996 precisely as a result of this event. Honey was included in the celebration, now organised by the Council of As Neves, as the ideal complement to cottage cheese.

In the past, cottage cheese was made by hand in the houses of the neighbours of the mountain parishes of As Neves: Cerdeira, Batalláns and San Xosé de Ribarteme, where there were extensive pastures which served as food for the livestock. The raw cow's and goat's milk was placed in a pot next to the lareira. When it was warm, natural rennet was sprinkled over it, and the milk was stirred and then left to stand for a day. Once it had curdled, it was placed in linen sacks to remove the whey, and then the sack was emptied and kneaded to give it a homogenous, creamy appearance. After cutting it into pieces, it was wrapped in vegetable leaves.

There is evidence of the production of curd cheese as early as the 12th century, and over time the product was traded, first as a bargaining chip and then for financial reward.

Honey, meanwhile, is abundant in the Condado and A Paradanta regions, where there is a wide variety of honey-producing plants such as heather, eucalyptus, bramble and chestnut. The bees extract nectar from them to make honey. In the past, the hives were built from the local cork oak trees. Modernisation made it possible to increase production and start marketing this excellent product.

The combination of curd cheese and honey has given rise to a legendary dessert. Good Friday is the ideal time to try it in As Neves.