Basque breeds and cultivars

Basque breeds and cultivars are domesticated animals and plant species that the Basque people have bred or cultivated for specific traits in the Basque Country. Some, like the Alano Español, did not originate there but have only survived in that region.

Among Basque livestock, the Azpi Gorri is a goat breed found in the Gorbeia region, Encartaciones, Anboto, and Aramotz. With fewer than 100 animals, it is an endangered rare breed and the only recognised goat breed from the area. The Basco-béarnaise is a sheep from the Northern Basque Country and Béarn, with long white wool, curved horns, and a weight of up to 80 kg. It is mainly a dairy sheep; its milk (7.42% fat, 5.39% protein) is used for AOC Ossau-Iraty cheese. The equivalent breed in the Spanish Basque Country is the Vasca Carranzana. The Baztanesa, or Baztango Txerria, is an extinct Celtic-type pig from the Baztan Valley in northern Navarre. Until the 1960s it was the most common pig there. The Betizu is an agile cattle breed with a large head and rectangular profile. The Chato Vitoriano, also called Chato de Vitoria, Chato Alavés, or Chato de Llanada, is an extinct pig breed that originated in Álava and spread across the Basque Country and into Valencia, La Rioja, and Castilla y León. It became extinct in the 1960s. The Enkarterriko Asto is the smallest Iberian donkey breed; males weigh 170–210 kg, females 140–190 kg, and height at the withers is just over 120 cm. The Euskal Antzara is the Basque domestic goose, raised for meat and eggs. Ganders weigh 7–9 kg, geese about 1 kg less; eggs are white and weigh at least 160 g. The Euskal Oiloa is the Basque chicken breed, with five varieties: Beltza (black), Gorria, Lepasoila (naked-necked), Marraduna, and Zilarra. At the end of 2013, all reported birds were from the País Vasco. The Euskal Txerria, also called Pie Noir du Pays Basque or Xuri eta beltza, is an indigenous pig breed standardised in France in 1921 and now endangered. The Latxa (also spelled lacha) is a Basque dairy sheep, mostly bred in Biscay, Gipuzkoa, and Navarre for milk used in Idiazábal and Roncal cheeses. It is a medium to small sheep with fairly coarse wool. The Pottoka is an ancient but endangered mountain horse breed. These small horses have a large head, small ears, short neck, long back, shaggy mane, and small hooves. They originally roamed the Basque Pyrenees semi-ferally but are now often stabled.

Five Basque dog breeds exist: the Basque Shepherd Dog, common throughout the Basque Country; the Pachón de Vitoria or Pachón Navarro; the Villano de Las Encartaciones; and the Villanuco de Las Encartaciones. All except the Pachón de Vitoria are indigenous to the Basque Autonomous Community and were recognised as traditional Basque breeds by government decree in 2001.

Basque cultivars include the Alubia pinta alavesa, a type of common bean. Apple growing has a long history in the Basque Country, especially for cider. The earliest written records of cider making and drinking date to the 11th and 12th centuries: a 1014 record of Sancho III of Navarre sending an envoy to the Monastery of Leire who mentions apples and cider-making, and a circa 1134 diary by pilgrim Aymeric Picaud in the Codex Calixtinus noting Basques grew apples and drank cider. Sixteenth-century inquisitor Pierre de Lancre called the Basque Country "the land of the apple." Many apple varieties exist for cider. Azkue's 1905 dictionary lists over 80 Basque apple varieties. Common ones include Errezila (sharp and sweet, mottled green, the most common), Geza miña (sharp, also called sagar zuria and esnaola sagarra, green), Goikoetxea (sharp, red), Mokoa (sharp, red), Mozoloa (sweet and fresh, green), Patzuloa (sweet and fresh, light green), Txalaka (sour and sweet, bright green), Ugarte (sour, red), Urdin sagarra (sharp, apple red on top and green underneath), and Urtebi txikia (sharp, yellow-green). Espelette peppers are a mild variety with AOC certification, grown in the Northern Basque Country around Espelette. Pelua cherries are an early black cherry cultivar. Xapata cherries are a black cherry variety with a very short fruiting season, lasting only a few weeks around June, cultivated mainly around the Lapurdian town of Itxassou.

Several Pyrenean breeds are common to the Basque Country and other Pyrenean regions. The Pirenaica is a cattle breed found in the Basque Country.