POLISH CARPATHIANS

In southern Poland, among the pastures of the Beskids mountain ranges and the Podhale region, Gorals (ethnic highlanders) uphold cheesemaking traditions dating back hundreds of years. Each summer, during the grazing season, head shepherds and their helpers take residence in distinct wooden cabins and make sheep’s cheese. Their huts are located near hiking trails and are accessible to tourists who come for a taste of this delicious local speciality

- KAROLINA WIERCIGROCH

Shepherds like Jaroslaw Buczek can be responsible for herds of up to 600 sheep, although typically as few as 100 will belong to them — the rest are entrusted to their care for the summer by local farmers. The shepherds negotiate with local landowners the use of fallow land, where the sheep graze on grass, flowers and herbs — a diet that gives their milk a distinct taste. The best-known mountain cheeses are oscypek, golka and redykolka. All three smoked cheeses are made using the same method — sheep’s milk is curdled, then the curd is formed into balls and placed in wooden moulds — but each has a different shape. Bundz is also popular — a fresh, mild cheese, which, if matured and mill