Comté Reserve France’s Jura Region, characterized by highland forests and snow covered plateaus, has been producing Comté, arguably France’s most important cheese, for several thousand years. Comté’s AOC designation stipulates that the milk must come from Montbéliarde or French Simmental cows. Produced in 40 Kg wheels, or millstones, (meules), total French Comté production comes from the pooled milk of 3250 farms; each farm has on average 45 cows and must be located within 25 Km of a Fruitières, the village cheesemaking facility where on average 20 wheels of cheese are made a day. Comté must undergo a rigorous grading process in accordance with the AOC rules. Those cheeses not making the grade are rejected and sold as (French) Gruyère. Comté has a pale yellow interior, is firm and supple in texture and the rind should be thin and hard. The flavour is savoury, nutty, and sweet, almost like toffee. Comté must be aged a minimum of 4 months but talented French affineurs push the aging period to as a long as 18 months. Try it with a dry Riesling or other full flavoured white wine (doesn’t pair so well with reds) and imagine the echo of cowbells in mountainside pastures as you savour this age-old treat. Click on any thumbnail or [MORE] for a larger image and full description. Available cheeses change on a regular basis. Cheeses listed will not necessarily be available at any given time. Beemster Extra Old Beemster exhibits the traditional characteristics, [MORE] Bleu d’Élizabeth Bleu d’Élizabeth is an organic, cheese [MORE] Cantal Cantal, according to Steve Jenkins, (The Cheese Primer), [MORE] Cape Vessey This is a chewy, pungent, cheese [MORE] Le Chèvre Noir This internationally acclaimed goat milk cheddar [MORE] Ciel de Charlevoix Whole milk from a single herd is used [MORE] Comté Reserve France’s Jura Region, [MORE] Evanturel Only recently developed, [MORE] Fleur en Lait Fleur en lait, a newcomer [MORE] Gorgonzola Dolce Gorgonzola, a blue veined cheese [MORE] Grey Owl Fromagerie La Detour’s newest cheese [MORE] Gruyère de Grotte (cave aged) The medieval town of Gruyères [MORE] Hercule du Charlevoix The Hercule is one of Canada’s unique cheeses [MORE] Lankaaster According to cheese maker Margaret Morris, [MORE] Lighthall Tomme Named after Petra’s mother-in-law, Lighthall Tomme [MORE] Niagara Gold An Oka-style, semi-soft cheese, [MORE] Paillot de chèvre This is a soft, surface ripened cheese, [MORE] Provincial Smoke A smooth and creamy smoked cheddar. [MORE]
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