The Mount Lebanon range, traditionally a Maronite stronghold, rises among the last surviving century-old cedars. Here, Baladi goats graze and Darfiyeh, a cheese made with raw goat milk, is still produced. This cheese has distinctive packaging: goatskin (Dariff) is cleaned and salted and then used as casing during the aging process. The goat milk, first filtered, is left to sit for a minimum of 24 hours before adding rennet from a kid and allowing it to solidify at 30-35 degrees Celsius. The curds are worked by hand, first broken into pieces then smashed together and formed into a ball, which is salted and dried and then broken a second time with a knife and left to sit for 12 hours. Arichi, a type of ricotta that is either salted or sweetened, is made by warming up the whey residue. The goatskin is cleaned and salted. The legs are tied with a cord, leaving only the neck open. Inside the body, the cheese and Arichi are arranged in alternating layers. They are aged in humid caves where they harden for a minimum of one month and a maximum of six. Production of the cheese requires the labor of the entire family: the father usually slaughters the goats, while the children tend the herd and the mother produces the cheese. Fresh cheese is often sold at the butcher shop alongside goat meat.

The Presidium
The presidium was founded to protect the traditional production of an ancient cheese at risk of extinction: Darfiyeh produced with raw goat’s milk and aged in goat’s skin. Over time the project hopes to include all producers of this cheese. Among its goals, the presidium hopes to resolve the problem of pasturing the goats, which must be regulated but not fenced in. The Souk El Tayeh, the first farmers’ market in Beirut where small-scale producers can sell their products direct, is an important outlet for this presidium.

Production area
Mountainous region in the north: Bcharré, Ehden, Inata


Presidium Coordinator
Rami Zurayk
Tel +961 3 733227
ramizurayk@slowfoodbeirut.org