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Raw materials/Variety/Race
The Tête de Moine AOC and Fromage de Bellelay AOC are cheeses made with raw milk.
Method of working/Cultivation/Breeding
The cows used to produce the milk are mainly nurtured with hay during winter and with grass during summer. Fermented feed is forbidden. After the milking, the milk must be transformed within 24 hours. The transformation takes place in copper caldrons. After the pressing and the moulding of the curdled milk, the cylindrical wheels are marked and then immersed for at least 12 hours in a salt bath. The Tête de Moine AOC and Fromage de Bellelay AOC cheeses are then regularly rubbed with salty water and ripened on spruce boards for a minimum of 75 days in the production area.
Aspect and Taste
The Tête de Moine AOC and Fromage de Bellelay AOC are a cylindershaped, semi-hard cheese measuring between 10 and 15 cm in diameter for a height between 70% at least and 100% at most of the diameter. It weighs between 700 and 900 gr. The rind is natural and firm. Its colour varies from brown to reddish brown. The colour of the paste varies from ivory to light yellow depending on the season of production. It has sparse holes, from 1 up to 8 mm in diameter, and a few small cracks. Its texture is delicate and soft. The Tête de Moine AOC and Fromage de Bellelay AOC have a flourished taste of herbs which get stronger with age.
Production Zone
The production area of Tête de Moine AOC and Fromage de Bellelay AOC includes the mountain and summering region of the Jura districts of Franches-Montagnes and Porrentruy and the Berne districts of Moutier and Courtelary.
History
The first written documents referring to a cheese produced by the monks from the Bellelay Abbey date back to 1192, so predating the Helvetic constitution. During the French revolution, the monks were chased away from the abbey and the cheese production continued in the neighbouring houses. That's why the designation Tête de Moine (head of monk) appeared in 1790.
Gastronomy
The Tête de Moine AOC and Fromage de Bellelay AOC are best stored in the refrigerator under a cheese cover to maintain its humidity. This conservation method preserves both its robust aroma and texture and ensures that the cheese is ready for paring at any time. The Tête de Moine AOC and Fromage de Bellelay AOC are not cut but pared (preferably straight from the fridge) with a special device called a Girolle® or a Pirouette®, with which the delicious rosettes are created. Experts are also able to pare the cheese with a knife blade held upright. The cheese should be savoured as a starter with an aperitif, as a gourmet snack or at the end of a meal.
Marketing
The product is sold as Tête de Moine AOC and Fromage de Bellelay AOC. The small round cheeses are sold wrapped into tin foil or plastic film. They are available whole, half or pre-pared in rosettes and packed. The Pirouette® is a functional packing and practical parer sold together with half a Tête de Moine AOC and Fromage de Bellelay AOC.
Distinctive features
The quality of the grass on which the cows feed gives Tête de Moine AOC and Fromage de Bellelay AOC their distinctive taste. Furthermore, the wafer-thin rosettes resulting from the paring method allow the full flavour of the cheese to develop and heighten the tasting pleasure.