Bucheron: Goat Cheese Worth Trying

There is an old saying that goes “age doesn’t matter, unless you’re a cheese”. Besides its funny connotation, there is also a slight truth in it. Aging in cheese, also known as ripening, is actually the most crucial part of cheese making.

Cheese are laid to rest in particularly controlled situations where they are allowed to develop the look, the texture, the flavor, as well as the aroma properties that make them unique. With aging, the bloom blossoms on Camembert, the holes magically turns into Swiss, and the veins burst through Gorgonzola.

While the cheese ages, microbes and enzymes grow inside, breaking down the proteins and milk far into several complex amino acids. The result, a rich texture and an intense flavor.

In order to have their own unique characteristics, most cheeses are aged between the periods of two weeks to two or more years. Therefore, the longer the cheese is aged, the firmer, sharper and more distinctive its texture becomes.

Cheeses like the Stravecchio Parmigiano Reggiano for example, are ripened for 24 to 36 months, giving it a nutty-fruity taste and a hard, gritty texture. Some cheeses are eaten fresh right away and not ripened at all, just like the ricotta, cream, and cottage cheeses.

But, some cheeses are ripened “half way through” these cheeses are known as semi aged cheese for about 5 to 10 weeks only. And one of the greatest tasting semi aged in the market today is the Bucheron Soignon cheese.

Bucheron is made from pure goat’s milk and is a native delicacy of Loire Valley in France. is a very favorite ingredient for salads and sandwiches because of its rich taste and is widely available as well. It has a soft, creamy center that has almost the same texture as a typical chevre (goat cheese), but typical is the last word that would describe this particular cheese.

One unique feature of the Bucheron cheese is its packaging it is made in short logs and aged before it is cut into smaller rounds. Its creamy center is surrounded by a much harder and tangier cheese that has a sharp and complex taste that, a lot better than your typical chevre.

A very interesting characteristic of the Bucheron cheese is its structure it has a layer of gooey cheese around the large chalky core, and a thin bloomy layer of mold like that or brie cheese. Softly ripened cheeses age from the outside in, that is why they have an interesting center.

Thanks to the natural magic of mold, you get two cheeses in one block: a creamy, mushroomy center with a dry and clay-like and mildly tangy fresh goat milk cheese at the crust. It tastes perfectly with Bordeaux’s or any other dry. Get some Bucheron cheese today and sink slowly into heaven.

Learn more about Bucheron Cheese.

Tagged with: cheese • cooking • desserts • dining • food

Filed under: Restaurants

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