This cheese is traditionally produced from goat’s or sheep’s milk, although some dairies also use cow’s milk or a mixture of the three, taken from breeds reared on the Cyclades in the southern Aegean Sea. The diet of the animals is based on the area’s endemic aromatic plants, which affect the flavor of their milk.

 

In recent past, the traditional method of producing this cheese was improved by the addition of fresh butter made from the cream obtained after skimming the milk, but this butter can only amount to 15% of the total weight of the cheese. It increases the fat content and gives Kopanisti an even creamier texture.

 

The flavor of this white to slightly pink cheese is often described as spicy, pungent, peppery, and reminiscent of Roquefort due to fermentation of bacteria such as penicillium and lactobacilli. The best-known types of Kopanisti are from Tinos and Mykonos.

The cheese is mainly served as an appetizer alongside a glass of ouzo, retsina, or raki, and is often used in traditional dishes and sandwiches due to its creamy and spreadable texture. One of the most popular ways to use it is in a Myconian variation of ntakos – a barley rusk that’s softened in olive oil and water, topped with chopped tomatoes, Kopanisti cheese, olive oil, and oregano.