Regional Products

Cheese

Traditionally, there are between 350 and 400 distinct types of French cheese, grouped into 8 categories, "les huit familles de fromage". There is a lot of variety between within each cheese category, leading some to claim that there are over 1000 different types of cheeses in France. In 1962, Charles de Gaulle was famously quoted as saying "How can you govern a country which has two hundred and forty-six varieties of cheese?".

Legally, French cheese production is classified under four categories:

- FERMIER: a farmhouse cheese which is produced on the farm where the milk is produced
- ARTISANAL: a producer producing cheese in relatively small quantities using milk from their own farm, but may also purchase milk from other local farms
- COOPERATIVE: a dairy, where local producers have joined to produce cheese. In big coopératives, the quantity of cheese produced may be relatively large
- INDUSTRIEL: a factory-made cheese from milk sourced locally, regionally, or nationally

56 cheeses are classified, protected, and regulated under French law. The majority are classified as "Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée" (AOC), the highest level of protection. Some are also classified under the less stringent but still legally regulated designation "Label Régional (LR).

Despite its huge variety of cheeses, only 4 Burgundy cheeses fall into this "AOC" classification:

- Epoisses de Bourgogne (cow milk)
- Mâconnais (goat milk)
- Charolais (goat milk)
- Chaource (cow milk)

Epoisses de Bourgogne

This wonderfully strong cheese is made in the North of Burgundy, in the village of Epoisses. It is a pungent, unpasteurized cows-milk cheese. It is smear ripened (washed in Marc de Bourgogne, the local pomace brandy), and has a distinctive orange colour.

At the start of the 16th century, the village was the home of a Cistercian community, which according to the legend, began making this cheese. When this community left Epoisses two hundred years later, they gave their recipe to the local farmers who improved it over the years. Before World War II, this cheese was very popular, with over 250 farms manufacturing it, but with men leaving to war, and women working the fields, this local cheese business was neglected.

Fortunately, in 1956, Robert and Simone Berthaut, who were local farmers, decided that Epoisses-making was a traditionnal technique that had to be preserved. They mobilized all those who knew how to make this cheese from before World War II, and the cheese became a spectacular success. The Berthaut business is now run by their sun, Jean Berthaut, although several artisanal fromageries have been granted the right to produce some as well.

Mâconnais

This cheese is made around the town of Mâcon, in southern Burgundy, traditionnally from goats-milk, but sometimes cows-milk is added. Although this region is most famous for its wines, the local goat cheese are quite exceptionnal, and are linked to the wine making: the goats graze in the fields around the vineyards!

Charolais

This cheese, named after the Charolais Burgundy region, has long been produced using both cow and goat milk, but this has changed. The be classified in the "AOC" appellation, it has to be produced with goat milk exclusively. This cheese is formed into a small barrel shape with slightly curved sides. It can be found fresh, lightly aged, or drier and more aged. As it ages, it develops light grey and blue mold on its rind, and the taste changes from a bright citrus to nuttier and earthier.

Chaource

This cheese is made with cow milk. The pâte is soft, creamy in colour, slightly crumbly, and is surrounded by a white Penicillium candidum rind. It has been made in its namesake village since the Middle Ages. Cheese is still manufactured there, ranging from small cheese makers to industrial scale production further away. It is only made in a tightly controlled area in the departement of Aube and Yonne.

Interesting article: "Why the little-known Chaource is such a big cheese with Daily Telegraph readers"

Wine

It goes without saying, everyone knows it, Burgundy is a wine-lover's paradise! There is so much to say about wines in Burgundy that we have decided to create a website entirely devoted to wine in Burgundy!

Honey

Honey has a long history of human consumption in Burgundy, and has always been used in various foods and beverages as a sweetener and flavoring. It also has a role in religion and symbolism. Flavors of honey vary based on the nectar source, and various types and grades of honey are available. It is also used in various medicinal traditions to treat ailments.

Pain d'épices

This wonderful "spice-bread", also called gingerbread, is a French cake whose ingredients, according to the Dictionnaire de l'académie française (1694), are rye flour, honey and spices. Apparently, this French cake was first commercialised in Reims, based on the recipe of a patisserie chef from Bourges. It became very popular when Charles VII and his mistress developed a taste for it. The honey used then was dark buckwheat honey from Brittany.

Facts:
In 1571, the Corporation of gingerbread makers of Reims was classified as different from pâtisserie chefs.
In 1596, the Parisian makers of gingerbread were given their own charter.
In Dijon, the gingerbread outspaced its older competitors in the Napoleonic era.

Historically, gingerbread was made like sourdough bread, with no leavening. It was left in a wooden trough to rest in a cool place for months, during which the honeyed rye flour experienced a fermentation. When ready, the dough was cooked in moulds. The modern product rises instead with baking powder, developed in the nineteenth century.

One of the most famous gingerbread companies in Burgundy - a must-see for any Dijon visitor - is Mulot & Petitjean. This family business is over 200 years old, and has been lasting for generations.

Escargots de Bourgogne

Burgundy snails are usually prepared with a garlic and parseley butter sauce, and are widely known as a refined French product. This traditional Burgundy dish will definitely please your palate!

They are usually served warm, in a special dish, a typical small casserole, with 6 to 12 holes, so as to position the snails in their shells, with the garlic and parsley butter on top. A special fork and snail tongs are used to eat them. They can also be served without their shells, in the garlic and parsley sauce. Miam!

Crémant de Bourgogne

As we have just published our new website, it seemed logical to write an article around our new tour – “Bubbles & Elegance: Sparkling Burgundy”!

Crémant de Bourgogne all started in the 19^th century, when two brothers in the Côte Chalonnaise hired a cooper from Champagne. This cooper, François Hubert Basile, is at the origin of sparkling wine in Burgundy.

In 1826, the first bottle of Crémant was commercialized under the name “Fleur de Champagne – Qualité Supérieure” – a year later, over a million bottles were sold!

Winemakers started producing Crémant de Bourgogne all over Burgundy, and in 1975, the Appellation is created.

This sparkling wine is produced in four departments: Yonne, Côte d’Or, Saône-et-Loire and Rhône. It can be made by combining several different grape varieties, with a minimum of 30% of either Chardonnay or Pinot Noir, or both.

Blanc de Blancs is made up of only white grape varieties and Blanc de Noirs of Pinot Noir only. The former is bright, acid and slightly mineral, whereas the latter is of a darker golden hue, fruitier, and has a better structure.

Key facts:

Surface: 1935 ha
Grape varieties: Pinot Noir, Gamay, Chardonnay, Aligoté, Sacy
Production: 8% of Burgundy wine production
240 producers
27% exported

Official website: http://www.cremantdebourgogne.fr/cremant/

If you feel like discovering the Crémant de Bourgogne with a specialist, feel free to book a tour!