True Manchego cheese is produced only from the milk of the Manchega sheep. (Other Spanish ewe-milk cheese is commonly referred to as Manchego-style). The Manchega sheep graze mostly on dry pasture, fallow land and stubbly brush fields on a high plateau outside of the cities of Toledo, Albacete, and Cuenca in a region southeast of Madrid. The somewhat harsh grazing conditions in the region might be expected to yield low-fat milk from which the cheese is manufactured. In fact, the opposite is true. Manchego actually has a fat content of as high as 57 percent, which explains its rich, intoxicating taste.

The cheese is subjected to a rigorous and detailed production process, with the base milk having a 6 percent fat minimum and the aging process limited to fresh areas with a humidity of between 75 and 85percent. Manchego typically is produced in a cylindrical shape with each cheese weighing between 2.5 to 3.5 Kg.