|
  |
|
|
Goat's cheese in France
Goats are modest animals. They do not need lush grass and are equally satisfied with herbs, stalks, and the leaves of bushes and trees. For this reason goats are kept nearly everywhere in France. They mostly belong to the small agricultural concerns, which have little or only barren land at their disposal. Over the centuries various regions, such as Poitou, Berry, Quercy, Provence and Corsica, have acquired a reputation for their goat's cheese. After the Second World War when agriculture was mechanized, many farmers turned away from goat breeding, which had been an important part of a traditional and varied, but uneconomic way of farming. It received a boost however after the students' revolt of May 1968. Many young people moved to the country to try out a more natural way of life. Their emblem became the goat. Even if most of the '68 generation eventually returned to the towns, those alternative people who stayed, gradually gained a deeper appreciation of their new métier. Fromage de chèvre, or Chèvre for short, became their staple product and no weekend market was complete without at least one stall selling goat's cheese. On average a goat can supply a gallon (4 liters) of milk a day, or 200 gallons (800 liters) a year. Goat's milk is richer in fat than either cow's or sheep's milk. The milk is heated up in a vat to about 90°F (33°C). Rennet is then added at a rate of about 1 fluid ounce to 25 gallons (30 milliliters to 100 liters). After a good half hour the milk curdles and the casein is transformed into a pudding-like mass. This is divided carefully into pieces with a so-called cheese harp, so that the whey can drain away. The cheese mass is now poured into containers with holes in the base. In the case of handmade cheeses, the small format, made from about one liter of milk, is the most popular. Tradition may on the other hand demand pyramid, rod or cylinder molds. When the goat's cheese comes out of the mold it is soft, white, very creamy and has little taste. After a week, during which it loses considerable volume through drying, it begins to develop its typical aroma. By the end of the second week it has become considerably firmer and a soft yellowish, or light bluish crust has begun to form. A clear but mild aroma has started to develop. After 20 to 30 days it has completed the drying process. The crust now shows cracks and often has patches of mold. The longer it remains exposed to the air, the harder, drier and stronger-tasting the cheese will become.
|
|
 |
|
PLEASE VISIT THE CONTRIBUTOR'S WEBSITE
No reactions yet.
Please login or sign up to rate this intel.
Please login or sign up to add a comment.
Yummy! Thank you for a mouth-watering intel.  I look forward to more intel about goat's cheese. (Perhaps with photos?) I have dozens of my neighbors' goats on my land, but here they are bred exclusively for their meat. It would be nice to learn more about milk-producing goats. One gallon, if that isn't a typo, strikes me as a massive amount of milk, considering that goats are just a bit larger than dogs. Well, the ones here in Southeast Asia are that size, anyway.
 | | nick Apr 8, 2008 13:31 | |
The copyright for this content entitled "Goat's cheese in France" has been specified by the contributor as:
Public Domain
The copyright for this content has been relinquished by the author. The content may be used freely by anyone.
|
|
|
This intel was contributed by bessy74
|
May, 2012
2008
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
2009
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
2010
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
2011
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
2012
January, February, March, April, May
|
|
Not a member yet?
Qondio is a powerful network for making it online. If you have a website to
promote, we can help.
Sign up and get in on the action.
|
|
Welcome to Qondio! Discover the awesome power this network can deliver by going to our About page. Or you could skip straight to the Sign Up form.
|
|
