It's the most expensive cheese in the world, produced by just one farm in Serbia, but donkey cheese could be the next cult¹ food item.

驴奶酪是世界上最昂贵的奶酪，全球仅有塞尔维亚一家农场生产，但其有望成为新一代热捧食品。

Although incredibly rare, the cheese is being hailed as a health food thanks to its nutritional² value - donkey milk is exceptionally high in protein, calcium³ and omega 3 fatty acids, which in turn are extremely good for maintaining cardiovascular health.

虽然极其稀有，但因其营养价值，驴奶酪被称为健康食品——驴奶的蛋白质、钙质和欧米伽3脂肪酸含量都异常地高，这对保持心血管健康大有裨益。

With more and more people claiming to have an intolerance to cow's milk and cheese, the donkey alternative is becoming an increasingly attractive option.

随着越来越多的人自称有牛奶和牛奶酪不耐受症，驴奶酪也越来越受欢迎。

However donkey cheese's hefty price tag means it's unlikely you're going to see it on the shelves of your local Sainsbury's any time soon - the cheese costs 880 per kilo.

然而，驴奶酪高昂的价格意味着它近期不太可能出现在你当地的塞恩斯伯里超市货架上——因为它每千克的售价为880英镑。

Slobodan Simić is the world's only producer of donkey cheese - he does it all on his farm in Zasavica, 50 miles west of the Serbian capital Belgrade.

斯洛博丹•西米奇是全球驴奶酪唯一的生产商——他在位于塞尔维亚首都贝尔格莱德西边50英里处的扎撒维卡农场完成全部生产过程。

Despite starting out with just 12 donkeys 16 years ago, Simić's herd⁴ has now grown to nearly 300. The reason the cheese, known as pule, is so expensive is that it takes 25 litres of fresh donkey milk to make a single litre of cheese.

16年前，西米奇仅仅有12头驴，而如今农场的牲畜数量已接近300。 驴奶酪，即“普勒”奶酪如此昂贵的原因在于25升新鲜驴奶仅能做出1升奶酪。

What's more, donkeys produce a lot less milk than cows or goats to start with.

另外，驴的产奶量比奶牛或山羊要少得多。

On Simić’s farm, the female donkeys are milked by hand three times a day.

在西米奇的农场，每天要给母驴手工挤3次奶。

But the difficulty in creating cheese lies in the fact that donkey milk doesn't have enough casein to coagulate - how Simić gets around this is a closely-guarded secret.

但制造驴奶酪的困难在于驴奶的酪蛋白不足，难以凝成奶酪——至于其秘方，西米奇严守如瓶。

Although not many people in the world have tasted the rare cheese, it is said to be similar to Manchego with a rich, nutty, earthy flavour and a crumbly texture⁵.

尽管世界上尝过稀罕的驴奶酪的人并不多，但据说，其与曼彻戈奶酪相似，味道浓郁深厚，有坚果口味和乡土味道，且口感松脆。

One person who is a fan of the filling cheese, however, is Novak Djokovic, who was a few years ago reported to have bought the whole supply, a claim he denied.

网球名将诺瓦克•德约科维奇就是驴奶酪的狂热爱好者之一。据报道，他曾在几年前买断所有的驴奶酪。但他对此予以否认。

And if legend is to be believed, Queen Cleopatra was also a fan - she is said to have bathed in asses⁶ milk to maintain her beauty.

如果古埃及传说是可信的话，埃及艳后克利奥佩特拉也钟情于驴奶酪——据称她用驴奶沐浴以使容颜永驻。

Donkey milk has a number of health benefits which make it superior to cow's milk - it has 60 times as much vitamin C as the more common milk.

驴奶的健康益处数不胜数，使之优于牛奶——其维C含量是普通牛奶的60倍。

Donkey milk also has anti-allergen properties and is just 1% fat.

驴奶还含有抗过敏物质，而且脂肪含量仅占1%。

What's more, it's been claimed that consuming even just a tiny amount daily can help tackle asthma⁷ and bronchitis.

另外，据称只要每日食用少量驴奶就有助于治疗哮喘和支气管炎。

But unless it becomes cheaper to produce, it's unlikely donkey cheese is going to give the wider population a health-boost any time soon.

然而，若其价格一直居高不下，驴奶酪的健康价值也无法早日惠及大众。