REBLECHON

In the Middle-Ages, farmers in the mountains of Haute Savoie used to pay their taxes with part of their milk production. They did not fully milk their cows so as to lower their level of production. Once the tax officers came to measure the milk produced and left, the farmers went back to milk the cows again. The milk they got was much richer and was used to make Reblochon. The name of the cheese means "to pinch a cow's udder again".

The existence of the Reblochon cheese was a well-kept secret within the Haute-Savoie for many years. Reblochon is aged in cellars or caves in the mountains. The cheesemaker turns the cheese every two days and washes it with whey in order to speed the aging process.

Semi-soft and surface-ripened Reblochon is a well-proportioned cheese with a thin, orange-yellow to pink, tight, velvety rind. The cheese has a warm, yeasty aroma with the sweet flavor of freshly crushed walnuts. With a softer-than-Brie texture and herbal aroma that comes from the mould, it is not for the timid. Pairs well with a Savoie white wine, or a fruity red wine such as Beaujolais.