Caseophile

Where to buy your cheese in Orleans?

This time, I'm giving you 2 addresses!

The first is in the middle of town... in the Halles-Châtelet market, no less. Some 7 years ago, a couple who are cheese experts, the Bernats, set up their "La Fromagerie" business not far from a wine merchant. And I can promise you that it is all too clear that they are professionals ... a number of years in the Paris Rungis market has taught them to pick out cheeses of exceptional quality. I bought a farmhouse Munster and a Saint Nectaire from them and had a real feast!

Fromagerie Bernat Halles Châtelet: tel 02 38 62 69 68

The second is a new arrival: open hardly 7 months! You need to go to faubourg Bannier. Florence Arlettaz, whose husband is a wine waiter, has just opened a welcoming cheese cellar, with a fine selection of matured cheeses from Hervé Mons, a well-known MOF (Meilleur Ouvrier de France) from the Rhône Alpes region (I've already told you about his stand at the Halles market in Lyon). Florence learnt the trade from him last year. An address to bear in mind if you feel peckish around midday (it's not that long a walk from the main station) or if you want to learn what wines and cheeses go best together, in a friendly setting – but without me ;-))):

La Cave ô Fromages – 25 faubourg Bannier – tel 02 38 81 29 51.

Where to buy your wine in Rennes?

La cave des Tuileries

35 rue Jean Guéhenno

I wondered for some time about how this name came about, as it could not be found anywhere else in the neighbourhood. But the reason is simple, once you know who owns the business – the Tuil family.

Does the name ring a bell? The Tuil domain ... in Burgundy?

Or to be exact Boyer-Gontard-Tuil in Meursault...

I had a good long chat with David an oenologist of the family and a sommelier, who convinced me about the use of a "wine key" from Peugeot used to taste quickly wines that are opened too soon when you don't have the right sort of cellar in which they can age. We sampled a Marsannay rosé from the domain, 100% pinot noir, total finesse, a Coteaux du Layon Beaulieu, also a white Sancerre bursting with fruity aromas, a Pommeau de Bretagne that went well to our great delight with a Bleu de Causses cheese, etc. etc.

In all, an address to write down if you wish to discover quality wines from all corners of France and elsewhere!

Comté cheese opens new “embassy” in Vannes (Brittany)

This new outlet to promote their cheese will open in Vannes in southern Brittany this week.

I have already spoken of this Comté cheese initiative in naming "voluntary cheese ambassadors" all over France in recognition of their great work in selecting, promoting and advising cheese traders.

The first such Embassies were opened in Autumn 2008 in Boulogne and Lille (at Ph. Olivier's place), then in Saumur (Y Berthonneau), Pau (G Bachelet), Paris (2 at once: L Dubois and E Lefebvre), Lyon (the Humberts) – and now in Vannes at the Fromagerie de Kérouzine run by the Régents.

Taking place in this inauguration:

• The opening of the Comptoir des Montagnes du Jura on November 14 in front of the store, with sampling counters for Comté and other regional cheeses, run by les Amis du Comté and also promoting the plentiful tourist attractions of the Jura mountains.
• Competitions from 14^th November to 12^th December (with in particular a stay in the Comté area and a year's supply of Comté cheese as prizes).
• Distribution of booklets about "The special favourites of Emmanuelle and Olivier Régent in the Pays de Comté".

Fromagerie de Kérouzine ‐ 3 place du Poids Public ‐ 56000 Vannes ‐ 02 97 42 64 69
www.le‐cercle‐des‐fromagers‐affineurs.com/fromagerie‐kerouzine.php

 

Where to buy your cheese in Melun?

Fromages & Compagnie

9 rue Carnot

77000 Melun

It's not far from the Hôtel de Ville (Town Hall) and attracts the local lovers of cheese. Or, to be exact, of cheeses. The shop was packed when I went on a Saturday, a good sign that the locals know where to get their bries! Those from Melen, of course, from Meaux (both have the local PDO recognition) … but also Nangis cheese, Montereau, Coulommiers and all the local white rind soft cheeses … as well of course as cheeses from the 4 corners of France and the world.

Where to buy your cheese in Beijing?

It's not that I'm just back from China, but rather that in recent months there has been talk on the web about the initiative of a Chinaman, Liu Yang who studied in France and discovered cheese here- in particular Brocciu. He liked putting it together with baijiu (rice alcohol – I've not tried it but it ought to go well with cheese – even hard cheese, like sake) and on returning home in 2007 was full of the desire to make cheese – which he got used to while in a French lycée. No sooner said than done! Just pay a call to his website www.lefromagerdepekin.com (in English!) and learn about the cheeses he produces … and sells in his shop every Sunday. And so to him, let's say "bonne chance!"

Best wishes to his "Grey Beijing"- a small camembert – in both raw and pasteurised varieties.

The Chinese market is vast, but there is a need to convince consumers to buy this product which they have had no experience of trying. And unlike expatriates, the Chinese eat melted cheese or white fuzzy rind soft cheeses (with a fairly light taste). The Bongrain group has in fact opened up in China with a factory making fresh soft cheese (Pikifou).

Where to buy your cheese in Brussels ?

With so many on holiday around the end of last month, I took a trip over the frontier to Waterloo to visit Bernadette Delange, a cheese merchant from the Fromagerie St Michel. And there wasn’t a sign of any English soldier around!

But with all our current problems of supply (on account of protest demonstrations by farmers) and so many customers enjoying a break, how was her display looking? A super assortment, in fact, on offer by this great lady of cheese whom I often bump into at cheese gatherings in France (most recently for example at the SIRHA International Caseus Awards where she headed up the Belgian contingent). I also served with her husband on the jury of a cheese competition last year.

In short, if you are ever in Brussels you must look her up at 244 Chaussée de Bruxelles – an address well known by her compatriots.

Where to buy your cheese in Perpignan (part 2)?

I've spoken about this before … and I'm talking here about it again, as you really should try to pay a visit to Cabestany, just near Perpignan, where you'll find the Fromagerie du Mas.

Augustin and Catherine Poch are running a business unlike most others: with a fine selection of cheeses from chez Xavier in Toulouse as well as charcuterie, spices, ice creams … and liquids as well, a selection of local wines and with the opportunity for you to sample both together.

Yes it's to be found on an industrial estate – this is no downtown dairy produce shop – but it's well worth the trip.

Firstly for the welcome you'll receive.

But also for the sound advice and the extensive choice on show (I'll just mention two products: a mature Gaperon… and the small Echourgnac with walnut liqueur).

And of course for the great ambiance there!

 

Where to buy your cheese in Grenoble?

After a recent visit to a friend of mine, I cannot stop myself talking about two “landmarks” of cheese gastronomy in Grenoble, a town many people often just skirt around en route for the neighbouring ski stations…

So stop! If only to visit the Museum of Dauphiné (Musée Dauphinois) and its collections covering the rural world of the Dauphiné region through the centuries… Costumes, tools, pictures…

Then go up into the “alpages” – indeed to Les Alpages cheesemongers, the lair of Bernard Mure Ravaud (Meilleur Ouvrier de France 2007) at 2 rue de Strasbourg. A very professional operation as one of their salespeople has just won the “best cheese platter competition”, organised by the profession… which will allow him to represent France at the International Caseus Awards of 2011!

And I’ve one more address in Grenoble. Though I don’t know whether I would put it under a “cheese” or a “wine” heading. It’s 2 rue du Palais (near the Place aux Herbes). 2 seems to be a lucky number in that town!

Emmanuel Heidsieck and Bruno Rascle are wine and cheese merchants… and also sell superb charcuterie.

Still not keen on a “gourmande” stop in Grenoble?

Where to buy your cheese in Paris 17e (part three)?

I’ve just been taken down a peg or two

;-)

At the very recent SIRHA cheese platter event which I attended (and wrote a piece about) and which was won by a young professional working with Bernard Mure-Ravaud, an MOF 2007 at the Alpages cheese production unit in Grenoble…I met a great figure in the French dairy business: Martine DUBOIS.

She asked me why, since her dairy shop is to be found exactly on my way from home to office, I never went in to see her. No excuse! When I go by in the morning and the blinds are still down, you can bet they’ve been busy in the shop for quite some time… however in fact, I’m sorry to say that in the evening when I return, there’s no longer anybody there…

Well, the cheese shop of Martine DUBOIS is to be found at 80 rue de Tocqueville in the 17^th arrondissement in Paris.

And it’s with lots of professionalism, and especially with passion, that Martine has run the shop for x years (I won’t say more, as a woman’s age is never mentioned, even if some men are proud to say how many years’ experience they have…)

In her place you can find “cheese confectionery to go with coffee”: pieces of extra old mimolette, wrapped in cellophane, all ready for you to dip into your Ethiopian blend.

So, see you soon, Martine!

Where to buy your cheese in Nîmes?

Well my “Tour de France” has not finished yet – far from it! Here’s a good address given to me by the locals.

To stock up, you absolutely have to go to

Stéphane VERGNE in the Halles market in Nîmes (Stall 122) – tel: 04 66 67 44 88.

He has another shop and cellars at 61 avenue Georges Pompidou in Nîmes – tel: 04 66 68 72 30

To be exact, this is chez Stéphane and Vincent Vergne, father and son “maturers of invented cheeses” (in French “fromages d’auteurs” – meaning there’s some creativity in the products they sell)

The first time I heard this description was during one of the first Caseus Montanus meetings in Val d’Aoste in 2001. And this expression came to stand for the equivalent of the general Italian agricultural cheese competition, the “shop window of Italian cheese”, where the best cheeses of Italy are given prizes by a jury. Traditional cheeses – very much countryside cheeses – and not subject to heavy marketing pressure.

Where to buy your cheese in Clermont Ferrand (part 2)?

Have a look at these pictures I took at the beginning of September and never published … shame on me!!

Here is Olivier Nivesse – 23 place St Pierre in Clermont Ferrand – a cheese maker and merchant and a great collector of cows … and ewes!

Where to buy your wine in Nantes?

Les Caves de Longchamp

72 rue Georges Lafont

44300 Nantes

 

Dominique Joly and his team are there to present you with their overwhelming selection of favourites! Major wines… from less well-known wine growers … and surprises from other countries,.

Come on, let me share with you a masterpiece I have truly fallen for – convinced by the description I got from Dominique Joly:

Commandaria St John is a Cypriot  " straw wine" produced by mixing two traditional vines from the island (red Mavro and white Xynisteri) in equal proportions.The wine-making process is based on a selection of sun-dried grapes which have become real raisins. This highly concentrated juice undergoes a slow natural fermentation in terra cotta jars and then is fed into oak barrels for a period of at least two years.

This flagship name among Cypriot wines is made in an area which has Limassol to the east, Paphos to the west and Mount Olympus to the north. Commandaria is without doubt one of the oldest wines in the world, if not the very oldest.

It has been made in the island for over 2,000 years, at first under the name “Nama” and it changed its name at the time of the Templars. These days, production is closely guarded (there are only 4 producers) and is recognised as an exceptional tipple!

And I would say to you that drinking it with a Fourme d’Ambert cheese is a pure delight. In moderation, however!! It is 15° alcohol … and not just could it damage your health, but it would stop you appreciating other wines to be tasted the same day.

Where to buy your cheese in Lyon?

Whenever you wish to buy good cheese in Lyon, make for Les Halles market at 102 cours Lafayette. You’ll find there no fewer than 5 cheese merchants, of whom the star of stars is Madam Richard, the person who did so much to spread the word about St Marcellin “à la lyonnaise”, nice and runny in its little plate.

Except that

1) Madam Richard is no longer with us - it’s her daughter (also called Renée) who has taken over behind the counter.

2) If like me, you go on a Wednesday afternoon, you’ll find a “closed” sign

 But that way you get the chance to stroll around the stalls in the market

 I knew I could find the stand of Hervé Mons, MOF (Cheese Master) in 2000, cheese maker and maturer from Roanne. However one of my friends assured me I couldn’t, but told me she had just (re)discovered a tip-top cheese merchant that I just had to see … the Maréchal operation.

 So here I am sauntering along in the market on the lookout for this “marshal”

You see him from a long way off – in particular a “cow lover” like me can ……

 Cow patches!! Decorated milk pots, a pleasant display full of good things, of good cheeses… and to crown it all, a welcoming, smiling team… extremely competent: thank you, ladies! And frankly you deserve a big photo.

 

Now that’s a good motto, don’t you think??

 And later I discover that the Maréchal cheese merchant is none other than the branch in Lyon of Hervé Mons… I take my hat off to him.

 Because, I am sometimes disappointed by the sales teams of certain “major” cheese operations. A stuffy atmosphere, a feeling you are being sized up, or even looked down upon by sales people who think they are the cat’s whiskers for working in a house of great repute. Without realising whom they are talking to…

 Here it’s quite the opposite! What a pleasure to be welcomed with a real smile, a piece of advice without “making a fuss” (excuse the expression) and great competence…

 Well I’ve suddenly realised that I’ve rather forgotten the three other cheese outlets in the market, such as Cellerier whom you can’t pass by without stopping – and if you don’t find him, you really should consult an optician…

 Anyway, we’ll come back to this!

Where to buy your cheese in Fréjus?

Mon Fromager

38 rue Sieyès

83600 Fréjus

Tel: 04 94 40 67 99

 

There was quite a downpour last week when I was passing through Fréjus. I was looking for the rue Désaugiers named after a famous music hall artist and theatre director of the 19^th century. And close by, I chanced upon “Mon Fromager”.

 

Under the direction of Robert Bedot who is an uncontested fount of knowledge in the South East.

Why describe this amazing cheese maker when so many others before me have done so? Anyway I’ve never had the occasion to discuss things directly with R. Bedot, despite having so many friends in common.

 

R. Bedot does not have a retail shop – which explains why this cheese factory in Fréjus does not directly use his name. He “only” sells to the catering trade (in particular to the top end of the market and his references are extraordinary… just visit his website) or he prepares buffets.

 

I have already been able to appreciate the quality on R. Bedot’s selection – in particular going to Vins et Agapes in Fréjus (see my note last July about this wine cellar)

Really first class

A very wide choice

All matured excellently

Enjoy!

Where to buy your cheese in Arras and Lens?

I’ve just been able to discuss with Jocelyne Marescaux for three good hours … and believe you me, a large number of the locals there swear only by her professionalism!

Just ask them about Finarde … a funny sort of name!!

It’s simply because that was the name of the street in Hulluch where the cheese shop was first opened … but here in Arras you’ll find mature cheeses on the Place des Héros. And in quite a lot of markets in surrounding districts.

I love the name of their cheese shop in Le Touquet: le Cercle Turophile … you may recall in a previous note about tyrosemiophiles, the Greek etymology of this name – “lovers of cheese labels”. Whereas our name Caseophile is just another way of saying “cheese lover” but with a Latin twist.

 

And once in this region, two other addresses are worth seeking out:

-       in Lens: the Fromagerie Robilliard in rue René Lancy… these are people who know how to choose the best, as I could see, on entering their shop, a superb display of cheese rubbed with walnut alcohol from the Sisters of La Trappe d’Echourgnac (just one thing wrong with this cheese: it is too small and disappears too quickly…)

 -       in

Boulogn s/Mer

… several readers have already pointed out to me that I did not apparently know Philippe Olivier. But of course I do. Even if, to my shame, I’ve never been to visit him in his shop in the rue Thiers in Boulogne.

A big man…and a great man too. A cheese lover. A master. A lover of fine things…

 

Where to buy your cheese in Limoges?

I wandered up to the top of the pedestrian area in Limoges, in fact to 14 rue Ferrerie, the sort of shop I really love: La Maison du Fromage.

 

From the outside a shade old fashioned and inside down to earth … but a very professional if passé sort of welcome (but my memory is probably affected by the age of the person serving me then) and some really fine cheeses! I could not resist taking a photo of the shop front with its display of farmhouse St Nectaires which had been matured in house … looks good doesn’t it?

 

Here too for your delight an assortment of their well matured cheeses.

 

And to complete your meal, remember that you can also find in this shop the whole range of La Belle Iloise tinned fish.

Where to buy your cheese in Tours

Les Fromages du Moulin is the cheesemakers’ operation of the Meunier family, that is to say of Rodolphe, title holder of the Meilleur Ouvrier of France in 2007, and winner together with Bernard Mure-Raveau from Grenoble of the most recent International Cheese Award, so one might in fact call him the “best cheese maker in the world”.

 

With a title like that, one might become big-headed… but that does not apply to Rodolphe, far from it! You won’t find him very often behind his stall in the Halles market in Tours (it’s probably Caroline who’ll be there) since he’s somewhere else around the world: check out his blog here with photos of him over in Japan, running training sessions on cooking with cheese, or also making it at the “Art of Cheese Academy” by Rodolphe Le Meunier.

 

Pretentious? Definitely NOT! He’s an excellent pro, always on the lookout for ideas of presentation, recipes etc…

 

And don’t forget that the Touraine area is the land of the goat, and so Rodolphe has a long experience in the making of farmhouse goat cheese.

 

 

Where to buy your cheese in Villefranche sur Saône?

Au Fin Renard

923 rue Nationale

69400 Villefranche s/Saône

Tel : +33 474 68 04 12

 

I didn’t go there by chance… one of my friends took me along (I was in favour!), telling me it was her favourite cheese store. As she comes from Lyon… it was worth the trip.

 

And I did not regret going with her! Firstly the enamel sign of the Compagnons Fromagers reassured me that here was a true master, Marcel Cachot.

Then came my first sight of his display of cheeses.

 

Finally I had a long conversation with M. Cachot. An experienced man, who knows what he is talking about, he took me through his different Charolais cheeses with detailed and friendly advice … a type of cheese I do not know well! And he showed me photos of the honours he received from various cheese confréries (brotherhoods).

 

So, don’t hesitate to stop in Villefranche, when you’re heading for Lyon. Your taste buds will thank you for it…

Some Parisian addresses of mine…

Here are the cheese merchants I regularly visit: 

In 75002 (The 2^nd arrondissement of Paris) : 8 rue des Petits Carreaux
75005: 131 rue Mouffetard
75007: 31 rue Cler
75014: 71 av du Général Leclerc
75015 : 83 rue Lecourbe, 101 rue Lecourbe, 94 rue du Commerce, 212 rue de la Convention
75016 : 48bis av Mozart
75018 : 20 rue Lepic
Neuilly : 7 rue des Huissiers, Covered market at 108 av Charles de Gaulle
Suresnes : 25 av Edouard Vaillant

So now you know where in Paris  or its suburbs to find the cheeses I suggest you try. Such as Brie de Meaux, Comté, Bleu des Causses...

Where to buy your cheese in Nantes?

A tip from a French reader of this blog: go to rue Copernic, not far from the Gradin car park and walk into a small shop that’s not much to look at, and you’ll be delighted!

It has to be at 3 rue Copernic – the only cheese merchant in the Yellow Pages in that street.

 My correspondent did not go into detail, saying that the selection is not as wide as the large cheese merchants but that they were “tip-top”.

Any comments?

Where to buy your cheese in Perpignan?

Poc i Poch
41 rue des Augustins in Perpignan.

Easy to find for a Lorraine native like me: the shop is on the corner of la Place des Poilus (those stubbly chinned French soldiers who defended my part of  France in the First World War, especially in North of Meuse and Verdun!)

I went in by chance, attracted by the ice creams from Chez Octave, irresistible on that sunny (at last) afternoon. And there I had a big surprise: a superb assortment of cheeses awaited me in a nice cool corner of the shop.
And what a selection! I immediately recognised the “touch” of Xavier, the master cheese merchant from Toulouse … a winner! Well matured cheeses just like I like them.

Poc i Poch also serves meals at lunchtime, one more reason to stop there after shopping or doing a tour of the old Catalan town … and I discovered as well that these are a brother (Augustin Poch) and his sister (Laure Poch) who have created the concept “cheese AND dessert” in Perpignan, after have tried out another idea of “a cheese menu” at Cabestany (just next to Perpignan) at the sign of “La Fromagerie du Mas Guerido”.

Where to buy your cheese in Toulouse?

There are a good 15 cheese shops in Toulouse , mostly around the Victor Hugo or Les Carmes market. Three of these are part of “Les Fromagers de France”: and they are Sena, Betty and Xavier.

Today I am going to speak particularly about Xavier, “master cheese maker since 1976”. Quite a score! I’ve many times had discussions with his son François, who now runs the operation and I can tell you that the torch has been handed on to an excellent professional.

I very much like the banner on their website which displays majestically a Cantal Entre Deux cheese, which is the most popular with the people of Toulouse on top of a menhir…

Xavier stands not only for a selection of quality cheeses and a team always at one’s service. He also has for several months now a restaurant La Table de Xavier (22 rue Dupuy) and even an extraordinary wine cellar (rue Caussette) with its impressive “draining” table where Xavier organises cheese and wine evenings… I recommend you to sign up for one. No it’s not me doing the presentation this time… ;-))

Where to buy your cheese in Troyes?

While you’re there… why not pop along to Les Halles market and visit the stall of la Crémerie Dominique. It’s not the biggest cheese display in the main market of

Troyes

but it has an excellent stock!!

With today’s shortage of St Nectaire farmhouse cheese, I discovered there a perfectly mature cheese and the patronne told me she was expecting more, coming direct from the Auvergne, as her supplier was going to the Troyes fair, which was due to start the following day… the rest of her stock was wholly up to my expectations. Well done, Madame Dominique… you really live up to your sign “Fromagers de France” (Cheese Merchants of France).

Where to buy your cheese in Paris 13? (part 2)

I don’t ever claim to cover everything or to be impartial: under this heading I only talk of addresses which I have really fallen for. It talks, above all, about meeting up with men and women who are passionate about what they do.

Last week I met a real pro from the 13^th arrondissement of Paris.

A charming pro – as charming as his name – GENTY whose shop is to be found at 169 boulevard Vincent Auriol not far from the Place de l’Italie. You’ll find cheeses there of course (Genty is a cheese producer) but also charcuterie (pork meats), fine groceries, wines…

In brief, another address in this part of Paris to add to Fil’O Fromage and not forgetting La Fromagerie at 51 rue de Tolbiac…

Where to buy your cheese in Bordeaux (part 2)

Michèle Cols-Boada is the other great name for cheese in Bordeaux :“La Ronde des Fromages” is to be found in Les Capucins market.

Don’t you find her collection of cows, goats and ewes (drawn by a well-known artist from the South-West) quite charming?

Where to buy your cheese in Colombes near Paris?

It’s called “la Voie Lactée” (The Milky Way”) – a pretty name and with an attractive symbol, a yin and yang design in a very fresh blue on one side and a Bordeaux red on the other. Their offering – “cheeses and wines direct from producers” - a good philosophy for you to discover at 3 place Maurice Chavany in Colombes.

All worth a detour!

Where to buy your cheese in Thonon-les-Bains ?

I recently met up again with Valérie Royer who, together with her husband Frédéric, took over some 18 months ago that noteworthy cheese shop – la Fromagerie Boujon – to be found at 7 rue St Sébastien in Thonon-les-Bains in the Haute-Savoie.

It’s no easy task to follow in the footsteps of a man renowned for his rigorous choice, particularly when it comes to goat cheese. But his successors are well able to keep up the standards. You should hear it when Valérie Royer talks about both “tommes” and “tomes” and you’ll understand why. Tommes from Savoie, tomes from Les Bauges, various mountain cheeses of this sort, none have any secrets from this lady who thinks nothing of walking for hours through the mountains to visit producers in the mountain pastures. There’s nothing, she says, like the pleasure of making an effort (running around mountains as my Swiss friends would say) to discover what treasures there are in them there hills!

Where to buy your cheese in Besançon ?

“Le Trou du Souris” (The Mouse Hole) in rue Gustave Courbet in Besançon (by the Beaux Arts market) and also on line at letroudusouris.com (also in English). I just love its mascot!!! A specialist of mature Comté cheese and other cheeses from the region.

There used to be another “Trou du Souris” in Pontarlier at 7 rue Ste Anne – the same concern, I suppose … put to the test a few years ago by a girl friend of mine from Val d’Ornans, but I’m not sure the shop still exists under this name. 

There’s no lack of local or artisan cheese shops or fruit shops in the Doubs area. If ever you set foot in the region, just go to the Hameau du Fromage, between the rivers Loue and Lison, to visit the cheese museum set up by Perrin cheese shop.

Where to buy your cheese in Bar-le-Duc (Meuse)?

It was not hard at all to find out about one of the best cheese merchants in Bar-le-Duc: all it needed was to find the one with the longest queue in front of their stall.

In fact, go to the covered market and look out for the stall of M. Bernard Devise. This cheese merchant – who visits a good number of markets in the North of the Meuse department is recognised not only for his selection of AOC cheeses in perfect condition but also for his advice. So says a professional in the restaurant business!

However, if you’re looking for something to make a raclette or a fondue, here’s another tip: stop at the Cellier des Gourmets at the top of the Boulevard de la Rochelle, not far from the church. There you’ll find a tiptop assortment of Savoie cheeses and in addition they’ll prepare for you a fondue mix or some raclette slices. All accompanied by delicious smoked cold meats. And well-chosen wines.

But read on…that’s the subject of my next tip!!!

Where to buy your cheese in Pau?

He’d been in business for hardly a couple of years when I was living in that town and quickly became a point of reference you just couldn’t ignore: I’m talking about Gabriel Bachelet.

 This specialist of farmhouse cheeses from the Pyrénées … sheep, cow, goat, he chose his cheeses for ripening in his cellars and then selling them throughout the world. And Gabriel Bachelet is a top professional in the cheese world: after studying at agricultural school, he went to the ENIL (National School of the Milk Industry), before teaching at the dairy school in Surgères, and then was responsible for quality standards in a cheese factory for several years… 

“Great taste experiences guaranteed” is a comment I read on one website. I buy that expression!!
And moreover it is in his business that the MOF (Best Worker in France)  2007, Laeticia Gaborit, is working.
So what are you waiting for?

Pay a visit to his site www.fromagesdespyrenees.fr

Just looking at “Jean-Pierre smoking his pipe” (= how the locals call their mountain - the Pic du Midi d'Ossau when it's shrouded in clouds) really puts me in a good mood to start my week !!

 

Where to buy your cheese in Paris 7e?

Three address you can’t ignore in this area of paris which is rich in crémeries-fromageries :

 -  La Fromagerie, 31 rue Cler, run by a crack team: Fabrice, Patrice, Michèle and the others. In the heart of a pedestrian street where you find one of the nicest markets in Paris a big shop, well stocked with cheeses at their peak, just as I like them… I don’t hide the fact, that’s where I do my shopping!

 - Nicole Barthélémy, 51 rue de Grenelle (on the corner with Boulevard Raspail): a big name in the cheese world, efficiently run for a good long time by a plain-speaking woman, full of personality… The proof? The number of embassies, ministries … and even those close to the French Head of State, who patronise her. It’s always a pleasure to chat with her.

 - Quatrehomme, 62 rue de Sèvres. Alain and Marie Quatrehomme have taken over with pleasure the family torch. M. Quatrehomme senior was already a famous cheese merchant and his daughter-in-law became the first lady MOF (Cheesemaster) in 2000. Their cheeses can be found in many a top Paris restaurant

But we cannot leave this  arrondissementwithout mentioning Marie-Anne Cantin in the rue du Champs de Mars, nor indeed a tiny boutique at 204 rue de Grenelle where they have a limited but top quality selection!

Where to buy your cheese in St Malo

Jean-Yves Bordier is a well-known name in the world of butter : for example seaweed butter or smoked salt butter… delicious on its own on a slice of rye bread. And you need to hear at least once in your life Jean-Yves talk about it to understand why they make salted butter in Brittany.You just have to let seaweed butter melt in your mouth to find yourself in the middle of the ocean…

But today I want to talk about him as a cheese expert. One forgets that Jean-Yves is the son of a Parisian dairyman, in St Maur to be exact, and that he first set up in Lannion 25 years ago, then in St Malo in 1985. Since then no table worth its salt in that part of the world would be without his cheeses. If ever you are in St Malo, don’t hesitate to pop into “La Fromagée” at 9 rue de l’Orme. In my opinion, he’s one of the best cheese merchants in France … and the organiser of the Cercle Rennais des Amateurs de Fromage…

Where to buy your cheese in Beaune ?

A great name in the cheese world with 2 addresses in Beaune, but someone who has a shop in the heart of town at 7 place Carnot – that’s Alain Hess.

According to the customers of this shop, you can’t but be impressed by the talent of this cheese merchant… just the mention of “époisses cendré” (époisses cheese in wood-ash) would make the eyes of many of you light up!! A good selection of Comté cheese of course … only the best! 

So don’t deprive yourself, go ahead and indulge in these cheeses with some of the marvellous wines of this region.

Where to buy your cheese in Dijon?

“A meal without cheese is like a day without sunshine”

 This is the saying featured on the brochure of a friendly and very professional cheese merchant from Dijon : Pascal BENNER, at the Crèmerie Porcheret, 18 rue Bannelier.

You can’t miss it: next to Les Halles market and attracting lots of custom on a Tuesday, market day. Nonetheless a superb welcome awaits you and he’s as patient as a saint, bending over backwards to satisfy a customer, and you’ve the intoxicating smells of his cheeses - in short making this a paradise on earth in Burgundy! 

Then up there with the best of Tamié cheeses, there’s the other great name of monastic cheeses, of course, Citeaux. This morning I went to visit the Cistercians but too early to find their shop open… but it’s a haven of peace on the edge of the forest… 

Where to buy your cheese in Paris 13?

Fil O Fromage - 12 rue Neuve Tolbiac - 75013

Tel : +33 153 79 13 35

You just have to go and chat with Chérif Boubrit… a man with a passion, if he didn’t, you know, I would not be recommending him!

Chérif and his wife Sylvie are proud to display the sign “Cheese Merchants of France” outside their shop - which helps you find them in this new neighbourhood, undergoing major development and with tall buildings all around, but it’s particularly inside that you discover their expertise: a well-chosen choice of cheeses, a delicatessen range and numerous wine crus… and the possibility of tasting when you’re there.

Mine host has –just like me – a second passion: wine and the matching of cheese and wine. Don’t hesitate to ask his advice.

To find rue Neuve Tolbiac is very simple : coming from the east, it's on the left, juste before the cow of the Bioart Restaurant and the Great Bibliothèque François Mitterand.

Where to buy your cheese at Aire sur la Lys (62)?

Simple! There’s only one cheeseshop. You can’t go wrong :-) … and they know what they’re talking about!

I’ve known Guy Leclercq for years and have come to appreciate his kindness (always ready to lend a hand)… and his professionalism, as well as that of his wife who looks after the shop in Aire.

So if you’re in that part of the world, juste between Calais and Paris, don’t hesitate to call in at 36 rue d’Alsace Lorraine : you’ll be able to buy numerous regional specialities (Maroilles, Lille...)and to stock up on well matured cheeses!

Where to buy your cheese in Nancy (continued)?

A new shop in the Grande Rue… of course, a “Marchand” outlet very nicely laid out, squeezed between the P’tit Cuny and the Lez’art where you can sit down and sample at the back of the shop. Real class! Fine cheeses you are "served from the front”  (my professional friends will understand). A nice ambiance – Only open since the beginning of November…

Where to buy your cheese in St Brieuc (Brittany)?

Two addresses stand out in the town centre:

- La Fromagerie de la Poste, 27 rue Jouallan

- The cheese shop at 24 rue St Gouéno; on the corner of the rue de la Charbonnerie

The first is run by two passionate young people who choose unusual cheeses … the second by a serious professional who knows how to choose Comté cheeses, St Nectaire fermier and other traditional cheeses, just as I like them!!

The first… is not just a cheese shop, but also a fine delicatessen, selling hams, foie gras etc.. The second is all in wood, very cosy … and mine host displays all his Franche-Comté cheeses, among which you find a “home-made” cancoillotte. One more reason, all you diet-driven ladies to go to see him, since cancoillotte is a very low fat cheese!!

Where to buy your cheese in Quimper (Brittany)

If I listen to some people, there is just one (excellent) cheese shop in QuimperLa Baratte, 82 Avenue de la Liberation.. A shop which still displays proudly the sign of Cheeses of Switzerland, proof that some 15 years ago, the then owner was able to offer his clientele a fine range of Swiss products, not all that easy at the time!

Still today, despite a change in the ownership, the shop is welcoming and the selection of cheeses really attractive…

But to listen to other people from Quimper,you shouldn’t hesitate to go also to the centre of town, for instance to Guy Pennarun, in the St François market hall, 16 quai Stéir. Bon appétit.

Where to buy your cheese in Vernon (27)

Vernon (Seine Valley, Claude Joseph is there to welcome you at 14 rue St Jacques in Vernon (Seine Valley, 75 kms West of Paris, direction Rouen). We have known each other for several years - and I can assure you that Claude knows his business! Like any good cheese retailer worth his salt, he has another passion: wine … so you can understand we enjoy a chat!

You can find in his shop some mature Swiss Comté du Vacherin-Mont d’Or … and many other mature cheeses. Go ahead…

Where to buy your cheese in Strasbourg?

I’ve already spoken to you in a note about Vinostrada, a superb wine cellar in Strasbourg , but I am coming back to it in particular today.

Go and visit the “Au Vieux Gourmet” shop at 3 rue des Orfèvres not far from the “golden square” Obviously. Cyrille and Christelle Lohro give you a warm welcome to their cheese shop tucked into the shopping area of Strasbourg.

Cyrille has been an MOF (an official “cheesemaster”) since  March '07 but was already an excellent cheese merchant before this nomination. (I can picture him blushing while reading this … yes, yes, Cyrille, I mean it!)

His shop is full of good things… a superb selection! Of course you’ll find Munster there, but also cheeses from throughout France and elsewhere. Don’t hesitate!

See you soon, on the banks of the ILL river !

Where to buy your cheese in Colmar?

ColmarA well-known address – with plenty of custom : Jacky and Christine Quesnot, at the Fromagerie St. Nicolas, 18 rue St Nicolas in ColmarA feast for the eyes …and for the taste buds! Right in the centre of town , not far from the cathedral.

Colmar is the capital not only of the wines of Alsace but also… of Munster, as it’s there that you find the HQ of the Syndicat Interprofessionnel du Fromage Munster-Géromé.

So go and browse around the small and large shops in that region, and you’ll discover the most appetising displays of

Munster you have ever set eyes on!! 

This 1rst weekend of September,I was, as every year, a member of the jury at the annual Munster competition… and I’ll tell you more about it in my next note, as well as about my favourite little cows – those from the Vosges. . 

Colmar is the birthplace of Bartholdi, the sculptor of the Statue of Liberty, the biggest reproduction in the world of which is to be found just across from the House of Alsacian Wines, as well the birthplace of the "Mise au Green" textile brand, whose logo is somehow missing an illustration of a Vosgian cow ! 

Where to buy your cheese in Bordeaux ?

 Here I’m going to be very biased, I know – but you need to pay attention to what is said to you :-))

And for many people from Bordeaux ultra mature cheese rhymes with Jean d’Alos, 4 rue Montesquieu, just by the Place des Grands Hommes. 

An address you can’t ignore, so to alert my taste buds… what I did yesterday with enormous pleasure. I’ve not had the time to sample cheese beer chosen by another great name in the cheese world – Philippe Olivier in Boulogne… but we’ll get round to that sooner or later! 

Well then, there are certainly other very honourable contacts in Bordeaux … don’t hesitate to tell me about them...
(Picture found on a super Bordeaux  mail-order website, Cestas, to be exact – http://www.finestwine.com)

Where to buy your cheese in La Baule ?

There are three cheese merchants in La Baule… and a certain number of others in the surroundings, among them Pascal Beillevaire, whom I have already mentioned to you – and his lorries which go around the markets of this region, but the one I have been strongly recommended is PERRIN. You will find them in the market at La Baule-Escoublac (Les Halles market – Place du Marché – tel 02 40 60 14 35).

And yes indeed, nothing but delight to be had there! I sampled among others a really tasty Comté with a melting texture and a super St Nectaire Fermier, just like those you can buy directly from the producer on the farms of the Auvergne (that’s to say, with a grey rind, and a texture that is not sticky…)

Truly here is a cheese retailer who really knows how to choose his products and is serious about his clientele!

Originally posted in French 20th August '07

Where to buy your cheese in Paris 17th (continued)

Things happen in summer…and on 15^th August last, la Fromagerie des Gourmets (in rue Poncelet in the 17^th) has just reopened after scarcely a month of building work!

Monsieur Lecuse has retired and those taking over (the Odeon group) have completely renovated the shop. The result: a very light, warm and welcoming shop, open to the street.

In charge of the store is François, dairy and cheese seller all his days (and from the look of his grey hair that’s been quite a time…) and previously in rue des Petits Carreaux. His selection of cheeses is impeccable and will certainly expand once he has really established himself…and once the Parisians are back from holiday

Originally posted in French 23rd August '07

Where to buy your cheese in Périgueux?

The Dordogne is a milky region … yes indeed, it’s not just ducks you find in this magnificent region in SW France.

There are also a lot of goats… and therefore there’s cabécou du Périgord (a collective brand registered in 1992) a small goat cheese with a soft paste, a natural crust, made with goat’s milk from the Périgord and necessarily matured in the region. On this association’s website you will read that trade in goat’s cheese has taken place there since the Middle Ages with taxes on it raised in the fairs of Périgueux.

Then there’s lamb, yes lamb of the Périgord is an PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) and a "Label Rouge" product since 1994… but the ewes are used more for their wool and their meat … and for feeding their lambs … so there is scarcely any production of ewe’s cheese.

More info on these two products from the Périgord on the website of the Association Aquitaine de Promotion Agroalimentaire.

But there are also quite a number of cow herds in the region. In an earlier note, I told you about the cheese of the Trappistines of Echourgnac, an uncooked pressed paste cheese like Port Salut, which is also sold in a matured version with walnut liqueur, another great specialty of the region.

But my review would not be complete if I did not mention a large company operating in Marsac, not far from Périgueux : Fromarsac, from the Bongrain group, makes famous cheese specialities such as St Môret or Tartare. Of course, these cheeses are not particularly associated with the region! But don’t forget they are made just like the others from milk. Several of my friends work there, and I guarantee you they have nothing to be ashamed of as thanks to them a number of people (milk producers, cheese manufacturing personnel, suppliers..) are able to continue to live in their region..

And to finish this note, a visit to La Ferme Périgourdine”, 9 rue Limogeanne in Périgueux is a must… Michelle Thieullent will welcome you with verve and passion!! To my knowledge, it’s the only cheese shop in Périgueux worth making a special trip (not forgetting her stall on the market square!)

Originally posted in French 11th April '07

Where to buy your cheese in Clermond Ferrand?

One address stands out: Nivesse

Olivier Nivesse is a super young fromagier who knows his cheeses backwards, can pick out and propose to his customers cheeses at the peak of perfection.
One example: at Nivesse you can find Sbrinz! That is so rare that it’s worth underlining.Bravo!And I remember a very friendly discussion with one of his salespeople during an event at La Tour d’Auvergne. There’s a great team feeling and everyone is always determined to know more about cheeses, producers, the regions…Fromagerie Nivesse
Open Tuesday to Friday from 8.45 to 14.00 and from 15.30 to 19.00
Saturday from 8.00 to 19.30
Cheese store – Dairy Products – Fine Wines – Tasting sessions (plate and glass)
23 place Saint-Pierre
Tel 04 73 31 07 00

It’s obviously in Clermont Ferrand that you see the cheese sections in big supermarkets with the best stocks of Saint-Nectaire… I have in mind the Leclerc in Le Brézet and the Auchan in Aubière…

Finally friends are advising me strongly to visit to Arlette in the marché St Pierre but that’s all I know about it (up to you to find the aforementioned lady and her crémerie)

Originally posted in French 8th June 07

Where to buy your cheese in Gap?

My favourite at this beginning of May

It was quite chilly yesterday morning..snow had fallen on the Bayard pass (1245m above sea level)... and I discovered a traditional cheese maker with a fantastic range.

Since 1935 the Bertrand family has produced here the local speciality: tome de Champsaur.
Champsaur and Valgaudemar, two names which I, mountain lover that I am, find enchanting...memories flood back: the Pas de l'Olan,the refuges of the Gioberney and La Bérarde, Ailefroide, les Ecrins.. unforgettable walks....

And by chance at a stop, I discover in the restaurant of the cheese store of the Col Bayard an impressive range of quality cheeses... and not only  local ones (tome de Champsaur, Col Bayard blue) but numerous cheeses from the 4 corners of France and elsewhere (Switzerland of course!)

In short, if you are around that way, just stop in this friendly spot to eat cheese pielets (click here for the recipe!), also to have  explained to you the amazing cheese platter on permanent display, to buy products based on argousier (oh! so you don't know this local shrub full of vitamin C, also called "olive of the North" and with medical uses?  Well click here)... not forgetting of course the countless cheeses you eat without restraint.

Originally posted in French by MMN 3rd May 07