A semi-hard to hard smoked table cheese with a light salty and tangy flavour produced in the traditional manner from cow's milk or from a mixture of cow's milk and sheep's milk or goafs milk.

Geographical area: The Metsovo province of the Ioannina prefecture.

This hard smoked cheese has been produced in the Metsovo mountain region from cow's milk or from a mixture of cow's milk with up to 20% of sheep/s milk or goat's milk for the last 30-40 years. The cheese is produced and ripened traditionally in installations within the defined geographical area.

Before coagulation begins whey from the previous day with an acidity of 0.30-0.35 SH is added to the milk in the proportion of 3-4%.

Coagulation is achieved at 32-35°C within 10-15 minutes. The cheese curd is then broken up and reheated to 46-48°C for 15-20 minutes. After this it is removed from the container, drained and ripened in a wooden vat until the acidity is 5.1-5.3 pH. It is then cut into strips and placed in water at 75-80°C where it is kneaded into a malleable mass before being transferred into hoop moulds which are then placed in cold water to stabilize the shape. Following this the cheeses are immersed in brine at 18-20B for a length of time