Picnik Artisan Cheese
Aura Damián opened a box of Siete Lobas from León, smelled her grandparents' farm in it, and Picnik has been a cheese shop ever since.
Why go
Cristian started the business in 2017 in the Carlos Haya district, after failing to find a job and deciding to make one. It sold gourmet provisions for a while. Then a delivery of Siete Lobas arrived from León and Aura Damián, who grew up around her grandparents' cows, goats and sheep, recognised the whole of it: The moment the parcel reached the shop and I opened it, the dance of memories started. I saw it clearly: this was the road we had been looking for.
2 They made artisan cheese the thread in 2018, took advice from Javier Barrera, the maestro quesero at Siete Lobas, and moved the shop into the centre.
The counter now runs Siete Lobas from León, Abuelo Ruperto from Murcia, El Bosqueño and El Bucarito from Cádiz province, Torta del Casar out of Cáceres, Almogrote from La Gomera, Idiazábal, Campo Rus from Cuenca, Olavidia from Quesos&Besos in Jaén and El Teyedu from Asturias. La Hortelana from Coín is the Málaga one. The couple go to the specialist fairs themselves, and Aura took the CheeseMaster course at the Madrid chamber of commerce.
Order this / avoid
- Order: the Siete Lobas, because it is the cheese the shop is built on and the one they will tell you the story of.2
- Order: La Hortelana from Coín if you want the province on the plate, and the Olavidia from Jaén if you want the one people queue up for.2
- Order: the cecina de León and the cured Iberian morcilla from Rota off the charcuterie side, and a Málaga beer with them. The fridge runs 3 Monos and Almijara.1
- Avoid: treating it as a grab-and-go. Carmen Alcaraz describes the small tasting space at the back, and Cristian's own line is that they want customers to try things there before carrying them home.1
What locals & experts say
- Carmen Alcaraz, Diario Sur (2019):
Picnik Artisan Food, a paradise for cheese people.
The three she picks off the counter are the Gamoneu, matured in mountain caves, the Monje Jimeno, cured in underground cellars, and the Afuega'l Pitu, which was used to pay tax in the eighteenth century.1 - Cristian, to Diario Sur:
In general the cheese market in Málaga is a fairly classic one, so we try to bring in different kinds, hard to get hold of here, that people who love this product value highly.
1 - Gurmé Málaga (ABC), on what the shop sets out to do: you could eat your way around Spain cheese by cheese off Aura and Cristian's counter.2
Good to know
- Where: Vendeja 11, in the historic centre on the Soho side of the Alameda. The shop began on Avenida Carlos Haya and moved in to reach the people who care about this kind of buying.2
- Closed: Sundays.1
- Price: in February 2019 the cecina de León was 25,95 euros a kilo and a blue sheep cheese 26,95. Expect more now.1
- There is a counter at the back to taste at, and the shop runs tastings when it can.1
- It ships. The online shop exists for people who cannot get to Vendeja.3
Verdict
could-visit — Aura Damián and Cristian buy every wedge in this place themselves, and it shows in what turns up: Torta del Casar out of Cáceres, Almogrote from La Gomera, Olavidia from Jaén, La Hortelana from Coín up the road. Cristian stocks deliberately against a conservative local market, so expect styles the rest of the city does not stock. Taste before you buy. The counter at the back is there for it. Closed Sunday.