Roquefort

Roquefort, a well known blue cheese, is made using sheep milk in Southern France. Similar items are produced elsewhere but EU law says only those aged in the natural Combalou caves, Roquefort-sur-Soulzon may be called Roquefort. It is a recognised geographical indication or has a protected designation of origin.

White, tangy, creamy and slightly moist, it has distinctive veins of blue mould and a characteristic fragrance and flavour with a notable taste of butyric acid. The blue veins provide a sharp tang. It has no rind; the exterior is edible and slightly salty. A typical wheel of Roquefort weighs 6 or 7 lb and is about 4 inches thick. Each kilo of finished cheese requires about 4.5 litres of milk to produce. In France, Roquefort is often called "King of Cheeses" or the "Cheese of Kings", although so are others.

Legend has it that it was discovered when a youth, eating his lunch of bread and ewes' milk cheese, saw a beautiful girl in the distance, abandoned his meal in a nearby cave and ran to meet her. When he returned a few months later, the mould (Penicillium roqueforti) had transformed his plain cheese into Roquefort.

In 79 AD, Pliny the Elder praised the cheeses of Lozère and Gévaudan and reported their popularity in ancient Rome. In 1737, Jean Astruc suggested this was a reference to an ancestor of Roquefort. The theory was widely taken up, and by the 1860s was being promoted by the Société des Caves. Others have dismissed the idea, as Pliny does not clearly identify a blue cheese and so he could be referring to fromage frais, cheese pickled in grape-juice or even fondue.

By the middle ages, Roquefort had become a recognised cheese. On 4 June 1411, Charles VI granted a monopoly for the ripening it to the people of R-sur-S, as they had been doing for centuries.

By 1820, Roquefort was producing 300 tonnes a year, a figure that steadily increased throughout the next century so that by 1914 it was 9,250 tonnes.

In 1925, the cheese was the recipient of France's first Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée when regulations controlling its production and naming were first defined.

In 1961, in a landmark ruling that removed imitation, the Tribunal de Grande Instance at Millau decreed that, although the method for its manufacture could be followed across the south of France, only cheeses ripened in the natural caves of Mont Combalou, Roquefort-sur-Soulzon were permitted to bear the name Roquefort.

The mould that gives Roquefort its distinctive character is found in the soil of the local caves. Traditionally, cheesemakers extracted it by leaving bread in the caves for six to eight weeks until it was consumed by the mould. The interior of the bread was then dried to produce a powder. In modern times, the mould can be grown in a laboratory, allowing greater consistency. The mould may either be added to the curd or introduced as an aerosol through holes poked in the rind.

Roquefort is made entirely from the milk of the Lacaune breed. Prior to AOC regulations in 1925, a small amount of cow's or goat's milk was sometimes added.

The cheese is produced throughout the Département of Aveyron and part of the nearby départements of Aude, Lozère, Gard, Hérault and Tarn.

As of 2009, there are seven Roquefort producers. The largest-volume brand by far is Roquefort Société made by the Société des Caves de Roquefort (a subsidiary of Lactalis), which holds several caves and opens its facilities to tourists, It accounts for around 60% of all production. Roquefort Papillon is also a well-known brand. The five other producers, each hold only one cave, and are Carles, Gabriel Coulet, Fromageries occitanes, Vernières and Le Vieux Berger.

Around three million were made in 2005 making it, after Comté, France's second-most-popular cheese.

Production of Roquefort involves 4,500 people who herd special ewes on 2,100 farms producing milk in a carefully defined oval grazing area across the Larzac Plain and up and down nearby hills and valleys. Total production in 2008 of about 19,000 tons was reported. The proportion of Roquefort exported to the USA remains small (450 tons out of 3,700 tons in total exports). Spain (with purchases of 1,000 tons) was by far the largest foreign customer.

The regional cuisine in and around Aveyron includes many Roquefort-based recipes for main-course meat sauces, savoury tarts and quiches, pies and fillings.

Contrary to popular belief, Penicillium roqueforti does not produce penicillin. However, due to the presence of other anti-inflammatory proteins, it was common in country districts for shepherds to apply it to wounds to avoid gangrene.

The Appellation d'origine contrôlée regulations that govern the production of Roquefort have been laid down over a number of decrees by the INAO. These include:

1. All milk used must be delivered at least 20 days after lambing has taken place.
2. The sheep must be on pasture, whenever possible, in an area that includes most of Aveyron and parts of neighbouring départements. At least 75% of any grain or fodder used must be local.
3. The milk must be whole, raw (not heated above 34 °C) and unfiltered except to remove microscopic particles.
4. The addition of rennet must occur within 48 hours of milking.
5. The Penicillium roqueforti used must be produced in France from the natural caves of R-sur-S.
6. The salting process must be performed using dry salt.
7. The whole process of maturation, cutting, packaging and refrigeration must take place in the commune of R-sur-S.