Cretan Cheese, cretancheese.gr
Cheese wheels ageing on wooden shelves inside a stone-built room

The cheeses of Crete

Made from the milk of sheep and goats that graze wild herbs in the mountains, Crete's cheeses carry the taste of the island. Choose a cheese to learn how it is made, how it tastes and how Cretans cook with it.

Protected by the European Union

PDO cheeses

These four cheeses can only be made in their defined area of Crete, from local milk, by the traditional method.

A wheel of Graviera Kritis with a wedge cut out
EU Protected Designation of Origin

Graviera Kritis

Γραβιέρα ΚρήτηςHard, sweet and nutty. Aged at least 3 months. All of Crete.
 Xinomyzithra Kritis in a clay bowl
EU Protected Designation of Origin

Xinomyzithra Kritis

Ξινομυζήθρα ΚρήτηςSoft, tangy whey cheese, matured in barrels. All of Crete.
 Pichtogalo Chanion in a clay pot beside a dakos rusk
EU Protected Designation of Origin

Pichtogalo Chanion

Πηχτόγαλο ΧανίωνFresh, creamy and lightly sour. Chania only.
 Xygalo Siteias spread on bread, with a clay pot
EU Protected Designation of Origin

Xygalo Siteias

Ξύγαλο ΣητείαςSoft and spreadable, gently sour. Sitia only.

From village dairies and mountain huts

Traditional Cretan cheeses

A wheel of Kefalotyri Kritis with a wedge cut out
Traditional

Kefalotyri Kritis

Κεφαλοτύρι ΚρήτηςHard, salty and sharp, with a ridged rind.
 A dried anthotyros with a cut wedge on a clay plate
Traditional

Dry Anthotyros

Ξηρός ΑνθότυροςWhey cheese salted and dried until firm and crumbly.
 Fresh sweet myzithra on a clay plate
Traditional

Sweet Myzithra

Μυζήθρα γλυκιάFresh, soft and mildly sweet whey cheese.
 A small white tyrozouli on a clay plate with thyme
Traditional

Tyrozouli

ΤυροζούλιSmall rustic cheese, fresh and white.
 Fresh malaka in a ceramic bowl, with cheese pies and herbs
Traditional

Malaka

ΜαλάκαSoft, stretchy young curd.
Traditional

Staka and stakovoutyro

Στάκα και στακοβούτυροRich cream cooked with flour, and its butter.

9,000 years of cheesemaking

The story of Cretan cheese

From the first flocks at Knossos and Minoan cheese strainers to Venetian trade, stone mitata in the mountains and today's protected cheeses. Read the story.