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Périgord cheese …..yes please!

10 January 2022
by Loups d'Or

Périgord cheese …..yes please!

O

ne of the things you just do when you’re in France, is going to one of the many many markets, on one of the many many village squares, where the stallholders show their wonderful selection of cheeses. France boasts over a thousand varieties of delicious cheese and the cheese stalls are a highlight. Seeing all that cheese, you’ll be surprised to learn though, that in Europe, the French, consuming an average of 26.4kg of cheese a year, and are behind the Danes, Icelanders and Finns. There’s a French cheese to suit everyone, soft or hard, crumbly or firm, mouldy, blue-veined or downright smelly. The main varieties are soft, blue, pressed and goat’s milk.

Although the Dordogne, or the Périgord, is the gastronomic heart of France and is famous for its wines and its truffles, it is less known for its cheeses. A quick look at some of Périgord’s delicious cheeses.

Chaumes

An hour’s drive south of Lusignac, the world-famous cheese, the Chaumes, is produced in Saint-Antoine-de-Breuilh. It is a semi-soft and bouncy cheese made from cow’s milk. Its rind is washed, and its colour is pale yellow. The cheese has a strong but balanced aroma, a supple, creamy, springy, and smooth texture, and a complex, nutty flavour.

The cheese has to age for about 4 weeks, after which it can be grilled or consumed on its own, accompanied by a piece of crusty bread. Chaumes is ideal for a warm night and pairs lovely with a crisp white wine

This Trappiste-style cheese has been produced since 1971, but 10 years later, when I worked in KLM’s Royal Class, I remember the Chaumes was one of the most popular cheeses we offered in our First Class ……which says enough.

Trappe d'Echourgnac

About a 30 min drive south of Lusignac, the monastic Trappe d'Echourgnac is produced at the Abbaye Notre-Dame de Bonne Espérance, since 1868. The cheese, made by Trappist nuns, comes from cow's milk, according to a traditional recipe based on Port Salut. The rind has a dark brown colour, and underneath it, the texture of the paste is supple and semi-soft.

The flavours are mild, full, rich, smoky and balanced, with distinctive aromas of walnuts. When cooked, the cheese becomes slightly stringy and runny. It's recommended to use it as a stuffing for ravioli and pair it with a glass of cider.

Le Chèvrefeuille

In Saint-Martial-de-Valette, 30 min north-east from Lusignac, the Fromagerie Chèvrefeuille has been specialising in fresh goat’s milk cheeses, since 1982.

Their speciality is the Cabécou du Périgord and other products are Enrobé, Quatrefeuilles and Sarlet, as well as a range of coated cheeses. Their Fleur Verte Chevrefeuille is a fresh goat cheese that is covered in herbs. There are small goats' cheeses flavoured with herbs, fruit and spices, which are available in fresh packaging, with a specific shell. The cheeses have a distinctive scalloped edge displaying a beautiful flower shape reminiscent of its namesake, Chèvrefeuille’ meaning ‘honeysuckle’. Of the 500 tonnes of cheese produced each year, the cheese dairy exports 20% of its production outside France.

These are just a few of many cheese dairies in the region, both in the Dordogne and the Charente, but we suggest to visiting one of the weekly markets and try the different cheeses there. Some other cheeses from the Périgord are Le Capelou, La Tomme d’Audrix, Rocamadour and Tomme de Sarladais.

Of course, you may be able to find a nice fresh and organic chèvre in the dairy isle of a supermarket, but the vast majority of cheeses sold in big chains are industrially processed, pasteurised milk cheeses which are actually slowly killing the real artisanal cheese industry. It is also the most constraining dairy rules, urged on by the three large companies which dominate the French milk and cheese industry. To slow the march of industrial cheese, we always buy our cheeses on the different markets in the region, where it’s so much fun seeing the passionate sellers who obviously love their jobs!

Bon appétit!

Pimm + Marcel

French cheese from Périgord | Gîte Loups d'Or Dordogne

Most of our blogs are written to give you more information about the area where we have our Gîte Loups d'Or. We also write about subjects we think are interesting for you to know. If you have any questions or if you want more information, please feel free to contact us.

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