Ezine Peyniri

Ezine Peyniri is a white cheese produced in the Ezine, Bayramiç and Ayvacık districts of Çanakkale Province, plus specified villages of the Çan and Merkez districts, at the foot of the Kaz Mountains on the Aegean coast of northwestern Turkey. The European Commission entered it in the register of protected designations of origin on 7 December 2023, by Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2746, published in Official Journal L series. Turkey's application was published in the Official Journal of the European Union as OJ C 287, 16 August 2023. The applicant body is the Association for the Protection of Ezine Peyniri and Dairy Farmers (Ezine Peynirini ve Mandıracılarını Koruma Geliştirme ve Tanıtma Derneği), Ezine, Çanakkale.

The specification classifies Ezine Peyniri as Class 1.3 — Cheeses. The CN code is 0406 (Cheese and curd) within chapter 04 (Dairy produce).

What makes it distinct

Ezine Peyniri is distinguished by three compulsory characteristics that set it apart from other Turkish brined white cheeses:

A prescribed three-milk blend. The specification requires a mixture of sheep's milk at 35–45%, goat's milk at a minimum of 40%, and cow's milk at a maximum of 25%, with the precise ratio varying by season. No single-species or two-species blends qualify. The milk comes from named breeds: sheep of Tahirova, Sakız, Dağlıç and Sakız+Dağlıç breeds, cows of Holstein breed, and goats of Karakeçi breed, all raised within the geographical area.

Animal-sourced abomasum rennet, no starter culture. The rennet is obtained from the abomasum of suckling cattle or sheep. Well-salted abomasum is dried and ground to flour consistency, stored in bottles, and dissolved in warm water as needed. No microbial or commercial starter culture is used at any stage of production.

Extended brine maturation of at least eight months. After pressing and initial salting, the cheese is packed in tins with brine prepared from sea salt, sealed airtight, and matured in cold air stores at 2–4°C for a minimum of eight months. Sea salt — not rock salt — is required by specification. The maturation period must be printed on the label in months.

The result is a rindless, semi-hard to firm white cheese with small internal holes, a white to light yellow colour, and a taste profile described as buttery and cooked-milk in aroma, with mild-sweet, salty and sour notes.

Chemical specification

The following minimum values are taken directly from the Single Document and Product Specification (sources above):

Production zone

The PDO production area covers Çanakkale Province as follows, per the Single Document:

• Full districts: Ezine, Bayramiç and Ayvacık

• Villages of Çan district: Şerbetli, Etili, Alatliburun, Küçüklü, Alibeyköy and Söğütalan

• Villages of Merkez district: Karacaören, Kurşunlu, Şerbetli and Kirazlı

All steps from pasturage and milk production through to cheese maturation must take place within this geographical area.

Climate and grazing conditions

The production zone lies between the Kaz Mountains (Kazdağları) and the Aegean Sea. The climate has transitional features between Mediterranean and Black Sea regimes — semi-humid, high-precipitation and persistently windy. The dominant wind direction is northerly; the most common winds are northeaster, north, southwester and south. Annual average precipitation ranges from 662.8 m³ to 854.9 m³, concentrated in December, January and February. Average annual temperature is 14.7°C; minimum temperature in February is −4.2°C and maximum in August is +35.8°C. Average humidity is 72.6%. Snow cover averages no more than 8 days per year, enabling year-round grazing.

This climate supports a high-diversity flora on the Kaz Mountains piedmont. The specification identifies the dominant aromatic plants as sweet marjoram (Origanum majorana L.), wild marjoram (Origanum vulgare), common sage (Salvia officinalis L.), horse mint (Mentha longifolia L.), lemon balm (Melissa officinalis L.) and common thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.). Animals graze freely on these pastures for a minimum of eight months per year. Concentrated animal feed is excluded from the diet at all times; winter feeding is with hay harvested from within the geographical area.

Production method

Production begins in March, aligned with the start of the sheep and goat milking season. The milk blend is pasteurised at 67°C for 30 minutes, then fermented at 32–34°C using animal abomasum rennet in vats of 1,500-litre capacity. After the curd mass forms and is cut, it rests for approximately 30 minutes to allow whey separation, then is pressed with a press cloth to expel further whey and fuse the curd. The curd is cut into moulds and immersed in brine prepared with 14–16 Baumé sea salt.

Cheese moulds are then removed from the brine, arranged in a single layer in tins, sprinkled with dry sea salt, and left to rest for 10–12 hours. The separated water is removed, the tins are filled completely, brine is added, and the tins are sealed airtight by soldering. Maturation proceeds in cold air stores at 2–4°C for at least eight months. Ripening is monitored visually by opening sample tins at intervals.

Control

Control authority per Register Extract (field 5): Çanakkale Provincial Directorate of Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, İsmetpaşa, 17100 Çanakkale Merkez/Çanakkale. Tel: +90 (286) 217 30 19; canakkale@tarimorman.gov.tr.

Audits are coordinated by the Association for the Protection of Ezine Peyniri and Dairy Farmers, with participation from an expert from Çanakkale Commodity Exchange, an expert from Çanakkale Provincial Directorate of Agriculture and Forestry, and an expert from the Food Engineering Department of Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University. Audit criteria cover milk origin, milk blend ratios, animal breeds, sea salt use, production stages, maturation period, physical and chemical properties, flavour, packaging, and use of the PDO logo.