Local producer SON JOVER (Mallorca)

Local producer SON JOVER

Cheeses made using the milk from red sheep, a breed native to Mallorca
Local producer SON JOVER

Cheeses made using the milk from red sheep, a breed native to Mallorca
Local producer SON JOVER

Cheeses made using the milk from red sheep, a breed native to Mallorca
Local producer SON JOVER

Cheeses made using the milk from red sheep, a breed native to Mallorca
Local producer SON JOVER

Cheeses made using the milk from red sheep, a breed native to Mallorca

Local producer SON JOVER

The land of the Son Jover estate, in Inca, has been farmed for centuries. The fourth generation of the family to own the estate works mainly in sheep breeding and the production of cheese and dairy by-products. Their speciality is cheese from the Mallorcan red sheep, which has exceptionally high-quality milk. The whole production process is organic.

Son Jover has a particular distinguishing feature: the indigenous red sheep of Mallorca, which produces very high-quality milk that forms the basis of the seasonal cheeses made at Son Jover. The Son Jover estate has been managed following traditional methods for the past four generations. Today, Margalida Seguí and her siblings run the business as a completely organic operation.

Son Jover is a family farm covering more than a thousand hectares in the foothills of the emblematic Puig de Santa Magdalena in Inca, Mallorca. The farm raises indigenous sheep and goats, which are kept using semi-extensive methods. There are currently around 500 Mallorca red sheep, 400 Mallorcan white sheep and around a hundred Málaga-breed goats, which graze the hazel and carob tree plantations.

Son Jover produces cheese from pasteurised and unpasteurised milk, as well as yogurts and requesón (similar to ricotta), all from the milk of Mallorcan red sheep. Products made with the milk from this indigenous sheep breed are produced from November to May, when the pasture is most abundant and the milk is at its best.

The animals are milked every day and the various products made two or three days a week. The milk is pasteurised, curdled and cut to be placed into moulds. The whole process is organic and certified by the Balearic Council of Organic Agricultural Products. The animals that are milked graze every day and sleep in the stable. The rest live and sleep out in the fields.

The dairy is also located on the farm. Separate facilities are used for the various products, depending on whether they are made from sheep’s milk or goat’s milk. You can buy the various cheeses and other items straight from the dairy, as well as visiting the facilities, which are open all year round on Saturdays and Sundays, and by appointment during the week. Visitors to the farm learn all about the process, are shown where the animals live (comfortable footwear is advised) and can sample the different sheep’s milk cheeses. A pure delicatessen experience.