Pouligny-Saint-Pierre is a French
goat
The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...
s'-milk
cheese made in the
Indre department of central
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
. Its name is derived from the commune of
Pouligny-Saint-Pierre in the Indre department where it was first made in the 18th century.
The cheese is distinctive, being pyramidal in shape and golden brown in colour with speckles of grey-blue mould, and is often known by the nicknames "
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower ( ; french: links=yes, tour Eiffel ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower.
Locally nicknamed "' ...
" or "
Pyramid
A pyramid (from el, πυραμίς ') is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single step at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilat ...
". It has a square base 6.5 cm wide, is around 9 cm high, and weighs . The central pâte is bright white with a smooth, crumbly texture that mixes an initial sour taste with salty and sweet overtones. The exterior has a musty odour reminiscent of hay.
It is made exclusively from unpasteurised
milk
Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Immune factors and immune-modula ...
. Both ''fermier'' (farmhouse) and ''industriel'' (dairy) production is used with the ''fermier'' bearing a green label, and ''industriel'' a red label. Its region of production is relatively small, taking in only 22 communes.
Manufacture
The manufacture is typical of the great goats cheeses of the
Loire Valley. The coagulating milk is placed whole into moulds with holes to drain the
whey
Whey is the liquid remaining after milk has been curdled and strained. It is a byproduct of the manufacturing of cheese or casein and has several commercial uses. Sweet whey is a byproduct resulting from the manufacture of rennet types of har ...
. It is then dried in a well-ventilated cellar with ''affinage'' of at least two weeks, although the best examples are left for up to five weeks. Production now occurs all year round although farmhouse manufacturers produce between spring and autumn.
Pouligny-Saint-Pierre received
AOC
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (; ; born October 13, 1989), also known by her initials AOC, is an American politician and activist. She has served as the U.S. representative for New York's 14th congressional district since 2019, as a member of ...
status in 1976. 294 tons were produced in 2005 of which 55% was ''fermier''.
See also
*
List of goat milk cheeses
Goat cheese is produced using goat milk, the milk of domestic goats. Goat milk is commonly used to make cultured dairy products, including cheese. Myriad goat milk cheeses are produced around the world.
Varieties
* Anari cheese
* Añejo ch ...
References
{{French cheeses
French cheeses
French products with protected designation of origin
Goat's-milk cheeses