Roquefort

Appearance & taste

The cheese is cylindrical, 19 to 20 cm in diameter, 8.5 to 11.5 cm high and weighing 2.5 to 3 kg. The rind is moist. The paste is soft and supple and evenly veined with blue-green mould. It contains at least 52 g of fat per 100 g of dry matter and at least 55 g of dry matter per 100 g of cheese. The specification describes a very special aroma with a slight smell of mould and a fine, pronounced flavour.

On the packaging, the name appears at least two thirds as large as the largest letters, with the EU symbol for protected designations of origin in the same field of vision. Added to this is the mark of the applicant association, the “red ewe” (brebis rouge).

Production

All steps from the milk to the end of ripening take place in the defined area. The sheep are kept in the traditional way without transhumance. At least three quarters of the green and dry fodder and cereals come from the area; on average across the flock, at most 200 kg of dry matter of dry fodder, cereals and supplementary feed is bought in per dairy ewe per year. As long as there is fresh grass and the weather allows, the sheep go out to pasture every day; indoors, the flock’s daily ration contains on average at least 1 kg of hay (dry matter) per animal.

Raw whole milk is used. The paste is inoculated with Penicillium roqueforti; powders and cultures are obtained from traditional fungal strains found in the microclimate of the cave cellars of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon. The curd drains without being pressed, so that regular holes form. The cheese is then pierced so that air can reach the inside.

Ripening takes place in the cellars in the scree slopes of the Combalou, where the mould spreads and gives the paste its colour and flavour. The cheese is then given a protective wrapping that slows the growth of the mould and continues to ripen slowly at temperatures down to −5 °C. In total, ripening lasts at least 90 days. Storing, cutting and packing are only allowed in the municipality of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon; shops that cut the cheese at a customer’s request or for direct sale are exempt.

Origin & history

The area covers the uplands in the south of the Massif Central with their edges and valley basins, over 400 m high. The Mediterranean and the Atlantic influence the climate: winters are long, and in summer there is often drought. The terrain is uneven in many places, and the soils are stony. According to the specification, the Lacaune sheep is well adapted to this: the thick fleece on its back protects it from the sun, and its hooves cope with stony ground.

The cellars lie at the foot of the rockfall slopes of the Combalou. Through cracks in the rock, the “fleurines”, cool air flows in and picks up moisture from the groundwater; this creates an even microclimate in which Penicillium roqueforti has developed.

Roquefort is mentioned as early as 1070 in the cartulary of the Abbey of Conques. In 1666 the Parliament of Toulouse confirmed the royal privileges dating from Charles VI and gave the inhabitants of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon the sole right to ripen Roquefort. In the 18th century Diderot and d’Alembert called it the “king of cheeses”. According to the specification, a law of 26 July 1925 made Roquefort the first cheese to receive a designation of origin.