Paràgel

Paràgel is a cheese made in Yelda. It was the winner of the International Democratic Union Cheese Festival's Best Imported Cheese To The IDU award in 2006.

Description

An interior-ripened cheese that is rindless, smooth and slightly bright-surfaced with a cream to yellow colour depending on type. It has very small and irregular openings distributed in the mass. The texture can be supple and flexible. Paràgel has a buttery aroma and can be somewhat sharp in the stronger varieties. It is typically aged about three months, though when the cheese is older it becomes more salty and tastes like hazelnut. The samples we have provided for this competition are of the older, stronger variety.

History

One of the oldest continuously produced Yeldan cheeses, Paràgel has been made in its namesake village for at least 700 years. Although its area of manufacture has extended since then, it is still only made in a tightly controlled area within 50 km. of Paràgel.

Exports

Almost all of the importing/exporting for the Pleiades Region is handled by international trading conglomerates in the nations of Generic Nation Product, Libertarian Chaos and Fort Smith. This includes cheeses. Only the very finest cheeses are exported directly from Yelda and they carry the "Fine Yeldan Cheeses™" label. Regular cheeses (which are really quite good, actually, but more of a "supermarket" quality) are shipped by one of the trading conglomerates and are simply labeled "Yeldan Cheese. Product of The People's Democratic Republic of Yelda". The samples of Paràgel cheese you see before you were hand crafted by Cheese Masters in the village of Paràgel and proudly wear the label, Fine Yeldan Cheeses™.