Bleu d'Auvergne

Bleu d'Auvergne

Country of origin	France
Region	Auvergne
Source of milk	Cow's milk
Pasteurized	No
Texture	Soft
Aging time	2 months
Certification	AOC Auvergne 1975
Related media on Wikimedia Commons

Bleu d'Auvergne is a French blue cheese, named for its place of origin in the Auvergne region of south-central France. It is made from cow's milk, and is one of the cheeses granted the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée from the French government.

Bleu d'Auvergne is of relatively recent origin, developed in the mid-1850s by a French cheesemaker named Antoine Roussel. Roussel noted that the occurrence of blue molds on his curd resulted in an agreeable taste, and conducted experiments to determine how veins of such mold could be induced. After several failed tests, Roussel discovered that the application of rye bread mold created the veining, and that pricking the curd with a needle provided increased aeration. It allowed the mold to enter the curd and encouraged its growth. Subsequently, his discovery and techniques spread throughout the region.

Today, bleu d'Auvergne is prepared via mechanical needling processes. It is then aged for approximately four weeks in cool, wet cellars before distribution, a relatively short period for blue cheeses.

Properties and uses

Bleu d'Auvergne has a strong and pungent taste, but to a lesser extent than other blue cheeses; it is less salted, with a creamier and more buttery taste and a moister texture. Some recipes also use a weaker form of mold, Penicillium glaucum, to create the blue veins, rather than the Penicillium roqueforti used in Roquefort and other blue cheeses.

Bleu d'Auvergne is often used in salad dressings and pasta seasonings, and also it is a good cheese for snacking. Sweet wines such as dessert - style riesling and sauvignon blanc or strong, robust red wines are commonly recommended to accompany it as well as rich, dark beer such as English barleywine or American porter, which have both the sweetness and bold flavor required to balance the cheese.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bleu d'Auvergne.

French cheeses

AOC	Abondance Banon Beaufort Bleu d'Auvergne Bleu des Causses Bleu de Gex Bleu du Vercors Brie de Meaux Brie de Melun Brocciu Camembert Cantal Chabichou du Poitou Chaource Chevrotin Comté Coulommiers Crottin de Chavignol Époisses Fourme d'Ambert Fourme de Montbrison Laguiole Langres Livarot Mâconnais Maroilles Mont d'Or Morbier Munster Neufchâtel Ossau-Iraty Pélardon Picodon Pont-l'Évêque Pouligny-Saint-Pierre Reblochon Rigotte de Condrieu Rocamadour Roquefort Saint-Nectaire Sainte-Maure de Touraine Salers Selles-sur-Cher Valençay

Unprotected varieties	Abbaye de Tamié Bleu de Bresse Brillat-Savarin Brie Cabécou Cancoillotte Carré de l'Est Chaumes Clochette Délice d'Argental Délice de Bourgogne Édel de Cléron Etorki Explorateur Gaperon Mont des Cats Mimolette Olivet cendré Port Salut Raclette Rochebaron Saint Agur Blue Saint-Félicien Saint-Marcellin Saint-Paulin Vacherin Vieux-Boulogne

Blue cheeses

List of blue cheeses

Ädelost Aura Abbey Blue Brie Bellingham Blue Bleu Bénédictin Bleu de Bresse Bleu des Causses Bleu d'Auvergne Bleu de Gex Bleu du Vercors-Sassenage Bleuchâtel Blue Castello Buxton Blue Cabrales cheese Cambozola Cashel Blue Cheshire cheese Cornish Blue Crozier Blue Danish Blue Dolcelatte Dorset Blue Vinney Dovedale cheese Dragon's Breath Blue Fourme d'Ambert Fourme de Montbrison Gamalost Gorgonzola Grinzola Kraftkar Lanark Blue Lymeswold cheese Maytag Blue cheese Newport 1665 Norbury Blue Oxford Blue Picón Bejes-Tresviso Rokpol Roquefort Saint Agur Blue Shropshire Blue Stichelton Stilton cheese Valdeón cheese Wensleydale cheese Wrekin White

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