Scientists from various countries have gathered in San Sebastián for the International Conference on Energy Materials and Applications (ICEMA). This year, the School of Engineering of Gipuzkoa of the University of the Basque Country (UPV) served as the main venue, following previous editions held in cities such as Marseille, Barcelona, Paris, or Seoul.
Beyond the scientific conferences, these internationally renowned physicists had the opportunity to explore the city, its culture, and customs. The Gaztelubide society hosted around forty of these physicists for a tasting event organized by the Cofradía del Queso Idiazabal of Ordizia.
It has been a very enriching experience, both scientifically and for discovering our culture and gastronomy.
The tasting was led in English by Juan Manuel Garmendia, a member of Gaztelubide and president of the federation of gastronomic brotherhoods (FECOGA). Representatives from the Ordizia cofradía produced a cheese on-site and offered attendees three cheeses of different maturation periods, one of them smoked, all bearing the Idiazabal Designation of Origin.
The organizers of this year's conference, professor Arkady Zhukov (from the UPV's Gipuzkoa campus and a resident of San Sebastián) and professor Julián González, were responsible for offering the Idiazabal cheese tasting to the international participants.
The group comprised scientists such as Rachel Liu (INICOPO), Zhenzi Lin (Zhejiang University, China), Kwok Cheung (Exousia Consulting, USA), David Tw. Lin (Tainan University, Taiwan), Tao Zhang (Macao Polytechnic University), Adriano Péres (Federal University of Santa Catarina, Brazil), among other forty physicists, who enjoyed tasting the cheese made from Latxa sheep's milk.
The attendees were pleasantly surprised by both the tasting and the live cheese-making demonstration by cofradía expert José Ignacio Iturrioz. The physicists showed great interest in learning the details of the production process and the use of natural rennet.
The president of the Cofradía, Jesús Mari Ormaetxea, along with members Iñaki Almandoz, Mikel Urretabizkaia, and Luis Iraola, supported Juan Manuel Garmendia in explaining the artisanal production of the cheese and the work of shepherds in the mountains of Gipuzkoa.
They emphasized the importance of preserving this artisanal activity, which, thanks to sheep farming, helps keep the Gipuzkoan mountains clean and attractive.
The dinner following the tasting was prepared by Gorka Leal, chef at Gaztelubide and a regular at such events. Leal delighted the physicists with his culinary expertise, and they responded with a long round of applause, appreciating both the Idiazabal cheese tasting and the Cofradía's efforts, as well as the dinner itself. The event successfully introduced this unique product to a distinguished international audience, who were greatly impressed by the local culture and customs.
