France's Tomme De Savoie Is An Alpine Delight

 

Tomme De Savoie (Tum-duh-sav-wah) is produced the Haute Savoie region of France which borders Switzerland and Italy. It is an area that is defined my towering mountains and deep valleys that are dotted with quaint villages. The cheese production here is strictly seasonal. During the winter months the dairy herds are housed in barns located in the valleys and are fed silage. This type of food does not produce the high grade of milk needed to produce top quality cheeses therefore cheese is not produced during this time. When spring arrives the dairy herds are walked up into the mountains to graze on the mountain flowers and grasses throughout the summer and into very early fall. During this time the milk that is produced is at its finest quality. In the late fall and winter the cheeses made from the spring and summer milk  have been aging and are ready to be sold. The great cheese Reblochon is also produced in this region.

Details: Tomme De Savoie is available as both pasteurized and raw milk versions, when found always choose the raw milk version. Tomme De Savoie is a semi-firm pressed cow's milk cheese that has an inedible fuzzy natural hard rind which came be somewhat thick. The new cheeses are aged from 3 to 6 months. The interior paste will usually have small holes throughout and will vary in color from straw to light beige. The forms that are produced range in size from 3 to 12lbs. The flavor of Tomme De Savoie will present a slight hint of salt along with mild raw beef and hazlenut undertones. This is a wonderful rustic cheese and well worth its purchase price.

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Shopping tor Tomme De Savoie: as with most firm cheeses avoid any that have a dry or cracked rind, and gray or red tinged interior paste as they are signs of a cheese gone bad. There are many non authentic Tomme De Savoie cheeses being imported to the US now. When shopping for this cheese be sure to read the label it should clearly say made (fabrique) in Savoie and raw milk (au lait cru). The inferior quality brands will say aged (affine) in Savoie. These brands are made elsewhere and are only aged in Savoie. They are less expensive but are really not worth the money you would pay for them so once again CHECK THE LABLES. The Perrin brand is the best importer of authentic Tomme De Savoie to the United States and can usually be found in Whole Foods or Wegmans.

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Wine Paring: since Tomme De Savoie is not an assertive cheese so it will go very well with both light or fruity reds and whites.