Oscypek: What Is Zakopane's Smoked Sheep Cheese and Where to Taste It

What the Protection Really Does

Oscypek is registered under the European Union Protected Designation of Origin (PDO). The rule limits the name, not the cheese. Any cheese that does not fit the criteria must be sold as serki góralskie, which means Highland cheese.

The Polish Agricultural and Food Quality Inspection in Krakow describes the genuine product the same way. It must contain at least 60% sheep milk, be hand-formed and smoked over coniferous wood, and be made only in a defined area of the Małopolska and Silesia voivodeships.

For a traveller the consequence is simple. A cheese sold as oscypek should carry the protected-name mark on its packaging or on the seller's documents. A cheese without it can still taste good, but it is not the protected product.

The Rules in One Table

The table below compares what the protected recipe requires. The figures come from the EU registration and the Polish food inspection.

How It Is Made

Unpasteurized salted sheep's milk is turned into curd, which is rinsed with boiling water and squeezed. The mass is pressed into wooden, spindle-shaped forms in decorative patterns. The forms then sit in a brine barrel for a night or two. After that they are cured in hot smoke in a wooden hut.

The patterns are not only decoration. According to the Tatra Museum, the moulds and their patterns were connected to the function the cheese had to fulfil. Sometimes the cheeses were used as currency to pay the shepherds.

Names and Shapes You Will See

The plural is oscypki. A rarer spelling is oszczypek. If a cheese does not meet the rules it is sold as serki góralskie, the Highland cheese.

Oscypki come in several sizes. The small ones are oval, the medium ones are shaped like a barrel and the big ones are spindle shaped. Only the big spindle is protected by the EU. You can also find the cheese shaped as hearts, roosters or deer, and those shapes are souvenirs, not the protected product.

A similar cheese is made in the Slovak Tatra Mountains under the name oštiepok. The two differ in the ratio of ingredients and the cheesemaking process.

Say It at the Counter

Ask for one oscypek, plural oscypki, and the seller will understand you. The word comes from the highlander verb scypać, which means to split, pinch or knead. Both meanings fit the process.

The maker is a baca, pronounced bah-tsa, and several of them are bace in the plural. Many bace still wear the woollen broadcloth coat, the leather vest and the black felt hat of the region and keep their own dialect.

Texture, Salt and Smoke

The texture is comparable to a firm mozzarella, and the taste is not. Oscypek is much sharper, brinier and smokier because of its high share of sheep milk and because the cheese is scalded first and smoked afterwards.

The outside is golden from pine or spruce smoke. The inside is creamy white. The colour on the outside ranges from pale lemon to brown, depending on how long the cheese was smoked.

If the cheese you are handed tastes mild and tastes of nothing but salt, ask where it was made. Real smoke is part of the taste.

How to Check Before You Pay

It is very hard to find authentic oscypek in Zakopane. Use three checks.

First, look at the shape. The protected cheese is the big spindle weighing between 600 and 800 g. Hearts, roosters and deer are not.

Second, ask for the protected-name mark on the packaging or the seller's documents.

Third, check the date. Real oscypek is made in the pastoral season from May to September and may be bought until the end of October. Outside those months, ask the seller when the cheese was made.

The cheese is a good souvenir from a day in the town even when it is not the protected one. Just pay for what it is.

Four Places to Try It

The table below compares where each option works and what to expect.

Train or Tour for a Tasting Day

A tour removes the search. The Zakopane Tour with Hot Springs, Cable Car and Cheese Tasting takes 11 hours and costs $32 per person from ExploreCracow.com, rated 4.9 from 4847 reviews. The Zakopane Cable Car, Oscypek and Thermal Baths Day Trip from KrakowDirect also takes 11 hours and costs $53.92 per person, rated 5 from 639 reviews.

Each tour names the cheese in its title. Ask the operator whether the tasting is at a producer or in a shop, and whether the cheese carries the protected-name mark.

The other way to go is the train. PKP Intercity runs a Pendolino from Krakow to Zakopane with a journey time of 1 hour 57 minutes, which leaves more time at the market or on the street. The train, bus or day tour comparison covers the choice in detail.

Cold, Grilled or With Bacon

Oscypek is usually served in thin slices accompanied by wine, vodka or beer. It is also excellent grilled.

The grilled version is simple. Cut the cheese into 1/2 inch slices, grill until it takes on a golden color and serve immediately with a dollop of cranberry jam. In Poland the cranberry is called żurawina.

For a heavier snack, roll a slice with a thin slice of bacon and grill it until the bacon becomes crispy.

On a day trip the easiest way to try it grilled is at a cafe or restaurant near Krupowki Street. Read the menu for the protected-name mark, or ask.

Why It Is Seasonal

The EU rule allows production between late April and early October, when the sheep eat fresh mountain grass. Before that, the milk is needed for the lambs. The pastoral season runs from May to September.

The practical effect for a day trip is clear. A summer visit gives you the best chance to meet a producer, join the Oscypek Festival and ask about cheese made that season. An autumn or winter visit means buying packaged cheese, so the protected-name mark matters more.

If you are not sure which season to visit, the Zakopane weather guide compares the months, and the Zakopane day trip from Krakow page lists the current tours.