Beaufort (cheese)
Encyclopedia
Beaufort is a hard, rather sharp cheese
made from cow's milk and is similar to gruyère
. It is produced in the area around Beaufort
located high in the French Alps
in the Savoie
region of France
. It is this high altitude that endows Beaufort with its unique flavor.
There are three varieties of Beaufort:
or Abondance
cows that graze in the Alps. First, the milk is heated and then the cheese is cast into its molds, pressed, and slated. The mold into which the Beaufort cheese is pressed lends a visually distinctive characteristic to Beaufort cheese: its concave rind. The cheese is smear-ripened to produce a stronger flavour and its rind color. The prepared cheese must then age for 6–12 months, or even longer, in a cool mountain cellar. During this period, the cheese takes on its yellow color and acquires much of its flavor.
, Comté
, Vacherin Fribourgeois or Emmental
, although slightly sharper in taste. Beaufort also has a very distinct aroma reminiscent of the pastures on which the Tarentaise and Abondance
cows graze, which provide the cheese's milk.
Beaufort is commonly used to make cheese fondue because it melts easily. One of the many cheeses that go well with white wine
, Beaufort is often enjoyed with fish, especially salmon
.
Cheese
Cheese is a generic term for a diverse group of milk-based food products. Cheese is produced throughout the world in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms....
made from cow's milk and is similar to gruyère
Gruyère (cheese)
Gruyère is a hard yellow cheese, named after the town of Gruyères in Switzerland, and originated in the cantons of Fribourg, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Jura, and Berne...
. It is produced in the area around Beaufort
Beaufort, Savoie
Beaufort, also Beaufort-sur-Doron, is a commune in the Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.-References:*...
located high in the French Alps
French Alps
The French Alps are those portions of the Alps mountain range which stand within France, located in the Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions....
in the Savoie
Savoie
Savoie is a French department located in the Rhône-Alpes region in the French Alps.Together with the Haute-Savoie, Savoie is one of the two departments of the historic region of Savoy that was annexed by France on June 14, 1860, following the signature of the Treaty of Turin on March 24, 1860...
region of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. It is this high altitude that endows Beaufort with its unique flavor.
There are three varieties of Beaufort:
- Beaufort de Savoie (or summer Beaufort)
- Beaufort d’alpage (made in chalets in the Alps)
- Beaufort d'hiver (winter Beaufort)
Preparation
Beaufort cheese is prepared using 11 liters of milk for every 1 kg of cheese desired. The milk used in one variety comes from the TarentaiseTarentaise cattle
Tarentaise cattle descend from the domestic cattle of the Tarentaise valley in France where they were isolated from other breeds for many thousands of years. The cattle adapted in such a way as to allow them to exist in high altitudes and be able to range in very steep and rough terrain to forage...
or Abondance
Abondance (cattle)
The Abondance is a mixed race breed of cattle which originated in the high valleys of Haute-Savoie, France.-Description:They are medium-sized, with the female weighing in at between 580 and 680 kilograms and standing 1.30 metres tall...
cows that graze in the Alps. First, the milk is heated and then the cheese is cast into its molds, pressed, and slated. The mold into which the Beaufort cheese is pressed lends a visually distinctive characteristic to Beaufort cheese: its concave rind. The cheese is smear-ripened to produce a stronger flavour and its rind color. The prepared cheese must then age for 6–12 months, or even longer, in a cool mountain cellar. During this period, the cheese takes on its yellow color and acquires much of its flavor.
Taste and texture
Beaufort cheese lacks holes yet is similar to GruyèreGruyère (cheese)
Gruyère is a hard yellow cheese, named after the town of Gruyères in Switzerland, and originated in the cantons of Fribourg, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Jura, and Berne...
, Comté
Comté (cheese)
Comté is a French cheese made from unpasteurized cow's milk in the Franche-Comté region of eastern France.Comté has the highest production figures of all French AOC cheeses, making around 40,000 tonnes annually...
, Vacherin Fribourgeois or Emmental
Emmental (cheese)
Emmental or Emmentaler is a cheese from Switzerland. It is sometimes known as Swiss cheese in North America, Australia and New Zealand, although Swiss cheese does not always imply Emmentaler....
, although slightly sharper in taste. Beaufort also has a very distinct aroma reminiscent of the pastures on which the Tarentaise and Abondance
Abondance (cattle)
The Abondance is a mixed race breed of cattle which originated in the high valleys of Haute-Savoie, France.-Description:They are medium-sized, with the female weighing in at between 580 and 680 kilograms and standing 1.30 metres tall...
cows graze, which provide the cheese's milk.
Beaufort is commonly used to make cheese fondue because it melts easily. One of the many cheeses that go well with white wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
, Beaufort is often enjoyed with fish, especially salmon
Salmon
Salmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...
.