Spain’s cheese menu is robust. The Iberian peninsula itself is sizable enough to create a full range of profiles. “Something very interesting is that most of the cheese made in the center is produced with sheep’s milk. This is because sheep’s milk is best in dry places, and the center of Spain is very, very dry. The cheese, as a result, also tends to be dry–and sweet, and crumbly. Culturally this is considered very Spanish. But if you go to the north of the country, especially the northwest, these regions are much more humid. This makes for very fresh, youthful, cow’s milk-based cheeses. They’re creamier, with high levels of acidity.”

Even in broad strokes, Diez’s description is enough to paint a picture of a captivating Iberian terroir–from arid highlands to cloud-and-hill dappled coasts, all of it blanketed by vibrant millennia of culture. 

“I feel that, when experiencing a destination with a different lens, you never feel like a tourist,” she says. Cheese can be one such prism. “When I visit the artisans I work with, the cheesemakers, I always try to learn how they interact with the landscape and its elements. Making a connection is absolutely necessary.” 

Diez believes that travel is enhanced and synergized by a drive to truly connect with one’s interests. Doing so may result in much, much more than simply acquiring knowledge; it can galvanize experience, and it can kickstart adventure. On her gastronomic endeavors, per one example, she’s gone spelunking in caves in Spain’s Asturias region. That she applies her travel experiences to her entrepreneurial spirit only underscores the argument: Travel can impact life in all its myriad chapters.