Cantal

Appearance & taste

Cantal is a regular cylinder with rounded edges. The large size weighs 35 to 45 kg and is made in moulds 36 to 42 cm in diameter; the small one weighs 8 to 10 kg with a diameter of 20 to 22 cm and carries the addition “small” on the label. The cheese contains at least 45 % fat in dry matter.

Depending on the ripening time, counted from renneting, the cheese is called “jeune” (young, 30 to 60 days, at least 57 % dry matter), “entre-deux” (semi-matured, 90 to 210 days, at least 58 %) or “vieux” (matured, at least 240 days, at least 60 %). Rind, paste and taste change as it ripens. The dry rind becomes thicker; it is first greyish-white, then golden and finally brown, sometimes with ochre to brown spots. The ivory to deep yellow paste is supple when young and may later become slightly crumbly. The specification describes the taste as milky and at first sometimes slightly acidic; with time it becomes more intense, fruity, full-bodied and long-lasting.

Cantal is also sold in pieces or grated. Except for packs under 70 g, cubes and grated cheese, a piece of rind must be included; grated cheese of different ripening stages may not be mixed.

Production

The basic ration of the dairy cows consists only of roughage from the area, at least 70 % of it pasture grass or preserved grass. On at least 120 days a year, pasture grass makes up at least 70 % of the basic ration of the lactating cows. Supplementary feed is limited to 1,800 kg per cow per year; genetically modified feed is prohibited.

The milk is curdled with rennet, and the curd is pressed a first time in the cheese press so that it drains better. It is then broken up and salted in the mass, which spreads the salt evenly and prepares the ripening. The second pressing gives the cheese its shape. In cool, damp cellars the wheels are regularly rubbed or brushed and turned. Milk production, cheesemaking and ripening take place in the defined area.

Origin & history

The area is a cool, damp upland at an altitude of at least 500 m or with steep slopes, and with at least 700 mm of rainfall a year. At its centre are the volcanic Monts du Cantal with the 1,858 m Plomb du Cantal. The harsh climate, altitude and relief oriented farming towards pasture and dairy cows.

According to the specification, authors of the 16th and 17th centuries bear witness to the cheese’s reputation, and in the 18th century the encyclopaedia of Diderot and d’Alembert showed how it was made in engravings. Originally it was made from May to October from the milk of large herds on the summer pastures of the Monts du Cantal, in “burons”, squat stone houses that also served as living quarters. In autumn the cheeses were sold in the valleys to merchants who ripened them further and traded them as far as the wine-growing areas of southern France; that is why the cheese had to keep for a long time. Since the end of the 19th century it has been made in dairies from the milk of several farms, all year round. In 1956 a court in Saint-Flour recognised the name as a designation of origin.