cheese, vacherin

Vacherin Mont d'Or (AOC in Switzerland, AOP in France as Mont d'Or) is produced only during the period when alpine cows return to lower pastures and cannot produce enough milk for Gruyère — the cheese was developed as a way to use the smaller quantities of autumn-winter milk. The spruce bark band that encircles the cheese during aging imparts a subtle resinous, woody quality to the interior through direct contact; the boxes the cheese is sold in also contribute. At peak ripeness, the interior is nearly pourable at room temperature — the rind holds it together like a skin. The traditional service method (heating in its box at 180°C for 20 minutes until the interior fully liquefies, then dipping bread and potatoes directly) is one of the great communal eating experiences in European food culture. The resinous note from the spruce and the richly savory, almost meat-like character of the fully ripened interior make it unlike any other cheese.