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Out of context: Reply #26
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He started by talking about his operation in Bordeaux. His cellar dates back to the 15th century. It was once part of a monastery and had been both the wine and cheese cellar in its previous life. The cave is 10 meters in the ground and provides a perfect environment for the again of cheese. He has at least three caves. One is especially for the chèvre as they share the same Penicillin Candidum that also lives in the ambiance of the cave. Another is for other types of soft cheese. The last is a more humid cave for the washed rind cheeses, which includes the Comté.
His employs between 12-14 people, all but him are women. He explained that the work of cheese making and affinage (aging) was the work of women, a “feminine” job. He laughed and said he wasn't being politically incorrect, but that it was “un métier très difficile” that needed the keen sense and the patience of women to do well. Perhaps that was the point of his puffy coat.
Affinage is an occupation that is in danger of disappearing. It is labor intensive, risky (with one “accident” one could loose a whole cave of cheese), and requires a highly skilled worker. He has no apprentice, as the work week of only 38 hours in France has made it nearly impossible to work with and train someone sufficiently. In addition, the regulations around cleanliness have even made it inconvenient to work on a short term basis with temporary apprentices.
The work of affinage is finicky and demanding, the proverbial labor of love. Some types of cheese must be turned everyday, others yet more often. Tasting must be done regularly to monitor the ripeness and to protect his sizable investment. He pays the cheese makers immediately after delivery to his cave, even though he may not be able to make a profit yet as the cheese needed to be aged first. Raw milk cheeses are living organisms that constantly evolve, unlike industrialized products that remain constant forever. Even the salt that he uses to wash the cheese rind must be of good quality. He uses only natural sel de mer that is free of anti-caking agents.
He emphasized that raw milk cheese making is in a steep decline in France. Out of the 1.2 million tons of cheese produced in France, only 200,000 of which are those made of raw milk. The 200K number covers both farmstead cheese and artisanal cheese.
He put partial blame for the decline on the EU regulations which have made it very difficult and less profitable to make raw milk cheese. These regulations cover everything from the cleanliness of the animal, the situation in the farms, to the pasteurization of the milk itself. They have made it nearly impossible for small producers of raw milk cheese to operate due to the high cost of maintaining code and scientific testing required. Mr. d'Alos himself must test at least 4 of his cheeses every month for signs of undesirable organisms.
The EU regulations are also responsible for the state of milk that is used to make the cheese. Most of the milk produced under these rules is too “clean” to be proper for cheese making. Mr.d'Alos called milk “une écologie fragile”, pronouncing it a life form that must be respected. “Clean” milk is as good as dead liquid. Nothing will grow in it.
Another problem is the changing nature of dairy industry in Europe. The trend toward large dairy farms is edging many breeds of cow closer and closer to extinction. In the1950's, there were at least 30 common breeds of milk producing cows in Europe. Currently there are five, the most predominant being the “milk factory” Holstein. This shortage of diverse milk source has a strong effect on cheese making. The respect for the terroir is diminishing from the disappearing diversity of cows.
The state of farmstead or artisanal cheese making in France is in decline. There are now only four makers of true Camembert, the rest are crappy commercial makers of inedible flobs. The true Comté is also more difficult to find, as it must be made from the milk of only the Montbéliard cows, whose number are diminishing.
Mr.d'Alos has created a network of likeminded people who help him search out cheese makers and support them. There are about 20 true affineurs left in France. They get together a few times a year to go to a specific region to taste cheese. The work is truly collaborative. Recently they got together to define the true flavors of Camembert, coming up with 80 distinct flavors and scents in Camembert. In fact he showed us a small set of scents in a Camembert, kind of like Le Nez du Vin.
Next we tasted eight types of cheese.