Tome fraîche de l’Aubrac

Appearance & taste

Tome fraîche de l’Aubrac is cream-coloured to light yellow, has a few holes and an elastic, firm texture. It melts on the palate, squeaks when chewed and is slightly sour. Smell and taste are above all fresh-milky and buttery, strong and long-lasting. When heated, it pulls into distinct strings while warm, which are elastic and smooth; according to the specification, its good reputation is based on this. It contains at least 50 % dry matter and at least 50 % fat in dry matter.

It is sold in pieces, vacuum-packed, in film or in a protective atmosphere, or grated, also frozen. Besides the name, the label bears the statement “unripened cheese”. The term “buron” is reserved for cheese from the milk of a single herd that stays on mountain pastures above 1,000 m from 25 May to 13 October; the cheese must be made in a permanent hut at that altitude.

Production

The milk comes from cows of the Simmental Française and Aubrac breeds or their crosses. They spend at least 170 days a year on pasture; the only roughage is plants from meadows and pastures in the area and cultivated fodder grasses and legumes. Maize and grass silage, bales and other feed stored moist are prohibited, as are genetically modified feeds. Supplementary feed is limited to an annual average of 6 kg per cow per day. According to the specification, breeding selection and a limited quantity of milk per cow make the milk rich in protein relative to fat.

Only raw whole cow’s milk is used, and its protein and fat content is not standardised; apart from macrofiltration, any physical treatment is prohibited. The cheese is neither cooked nor salted. The whey drains off in a cheese press. The mass then rests until it turns sour through fermentation; this creates the firm, elastic texture, the aromas and the ability to pull into strings after heating. According to the specification, the fact that the milk is not heated preserves the protein network that supports the strings. Milk production, cheesemaking and maturation take place in the area.

Origin & history

The Aubrac is a wide stretch of country marked by hills and plains in the Aveyron, Cantal and Lozère departments, with a plateau at an average altitude of 1,000 m at its centre; to the west and south it is bounded by the Truyère and the Lot. The soils consist of basalt or granite. The harsh climate brings long, cold, windy and often snowy winters and more than 1,000 mm of rain a year. Many aromatic plants grow on the pastures, such as spignel, yarrow, knapweed, self-heal and thyme.

According to the specification, the cheese goes back to monks who settled in the Aubrac in the 12th century; it was food for pilgrims on the way to Santiago de Compostela. The “buronniers”, the cheesemakers of the summer pastures, continued the production. “Tome” with one “m” meant an “unfinished” cheese, that is, unsalted, unshaped and unripened. At the end of the 1950s the rural exodus and changes in farming hit the “burons” hard; from 1960 a group of young farmers revived production with a cooperative. The cheese is the basis of typical Aubrac dishes such as aligot.