Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez sampled the world's most expensive cheese during a campaign stop in Gijón on Monday, tasting a 37,500 euro Cabrales wheel.
The head of the Spanish government enjoyed the record breaking blue cheese during a brief lunch at the well known Montera Picona cider house, shortly before addressing thousands of party supporters in the northern coastal city.
Sánchez arrived at the establishment accompanied by an official delegation of around twenty people. The political entourage included Adrián Barbón, the president of the Principality of Asturias, along with Adriana Lastra, the lead candidate for the Congress of Deputies representing the province of Asturias.
The visiting party also included Lara Martínez, the Socialist candidate for mayor of Gijón, and Delia Losa, the newly appointed government delegate in Asturias. The group gathered at the venue ahead of an electoral pre campaign rally held at the Luis Adaro exhibition grounds, where Sánchez addressed a crowd of 3,000 attendees.
Asturias, located along Spain's rugged northern Atlantic coast, is renowned for its dairy farming, maritime heritage, and distinctive culinary customs. The Luis Adaro trade fair complex regularly hosts major cultural and political events in the port city.
Quick cider house lunch
The lunch at Montera Picona was a remarkably brisk meal. The owner of the establishment, Emilio Rubio, explained during an interview on regional radio station COPE Asturias that the entire sitting lasted barely 45 minutes because the prime minister and his companions were operating on a very tight schedule.
Despite the haste, Rubio described the atmosphere inside the dining room as exceptionally pleasant, adding that the Spanish leader appeared thoroughly pleased throughout the brief visit and departed delighted with the experience.
The meal opened with shared starters highlighting traditional Asturian and Spanish fare. Diners shared dishes of garlic prawns, pan fried clams, cured Iberian ham, and chosco de Tineo, a traditional smoked pork sausage seasoned with paprika and salt that holds protected geographical indication status in western Asturias.
For the main course, several guests opted for grilled sea bass, known locally as lubina a la espalda. Sánchez chose a grilled beef sirloin steak, which Rubio confirmed was cooked medium to the prime minister's request.
Although the dining table primarily consumed bottled water throughout the lunch, the gathering also enjoyed traditional Asturian cider and Cangas wine. The wine from Cangas del Narcea carries official protected designation of origin certification, representing a historic viticultural tradition cultivated on steep mountain terraces in south western Asturias.
Sampling the record Cabrales
The culmination of the meal came at dessert, when Rubio brought out the renowned wheel of Cabrales cheese. The proprietor personally sliced the blue cheese in front of Sánchez so the prime minister could taste the rare product directly.
Rubio noted that the prime minister was fully conscious that he was tasting a singular gastronomic creation. The restaurateur explained to Sánchez that the cider house had paid 37,500 euros for the single cheese, prompting the Spanish leader to remark that the price tag seemed an astonishing amount of money.
Rubio added that Sánchez was so impressed by the cheese and its back story that he took out his mobile telephone and photographed the dairy piece himself before finishing his portion.
Cabrales is an artisanal blue cheese produced by rural cheesemakers in the Picos de Europa mountain range in northern Spain. The cheese is traditionally made from raw cow, sheep, or goat milk and aged for several months inside cool, damp limestone caves, where natural humidity and mountain moulds create its characteristic blue green veins and pungent aroma.
Auction record and dairy support
Montera Picona acquired the prized cheese wheel on August 30 during the 54th edition of the annual Cabrales Cheese Competition, held in the eastern district of Asturias. The winning bid of 37,500 euros broke the Guinness World Record for the highest price ever paid for a single cheese at an auction.
The record purchase was carried out as a collaborative venture between Montera Picona and three allied cider houses located in Madrid: La Cuenca, Lo de Viole, and Carlos Tartiere. While the proprietors initially considered placing the expensive wheel on permanent display as a showpiece, they subsequently decided to open the cheese and share it with patrons.
Rubio explained that the auction served an important economic role beyond achieving widespread media coverage and setting a world record. A significant portion of the money raised in the bidding went directly to the Regulatory Council of the Cabrales Protected Designation of Origin, providing dedicated institutional support for livestock farming and the wider agrifood industry across Asturias.
The award winning cheese was crafted by the Ángel Díaz Herrero dairy, whose representative Encarni Badía formally accepted the prize for the finest Cabrales cheese of 2026 after maturing the piece in a limestone cavern high in the Picos de Europa.
A gift for Moncloa
The tasting session proved such a triumph that Rubio decided to offer Sánchez a special gift. Because the prime minister enjoyed the cheese so much, the proprietor gave him another piece cut from the exact same production batch to take home with him to the Moncloa Palace, the official prime ministerial residence and government seat in Madrid.
The high profile visit took the restaurant staff by surprise. Rubio revealed that the booking was submitted only three days before the event, and it was scheduled for a Monday, which is normally the weekly day off for the cider house staff.
The owner explained that he had to reflect on whether to accept the reservation and consult directly with his workers before they collectively agreed to open the restaurant especially to host the government delegation.
Rubio, who had previously served Sánchez two years earlier at the Fitur international tourism trade fair in Madrid, remarked on the prime minister's physical condition, observing that he appeared very thin in person but ate heartily throughout the meal.
The cider house owner confirmed that the government group paid their lunch bill in full before proceeding to the campaign rally. However, when asked whether Sánchez and his entourage left a gratuity for the waitstaff, Rubio declined to say, insisting that he could not disclose whether a tip was provided.
