Sainte-Maure de Touraine is a French cheese produced in the province of
Touraine, mainly in the department of
Indre-et-Loire
Indre-et-Loire () is a department in west-central France named after the Indre River and Loire River
The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it ...
. It is named after the small town of
Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine
Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine () is a commune in the French department of Indre-et-Loire, Centre-Val de Loire.
The name of the commune is known for its goat cheese Sainte-Maure de Touraine which was first made in the province of Touraine.
Population
...
, in the department of
Indre-et-Loire
Indre-et-Loire () is a department in west-central France named after the Indre River and Loire River
The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it ...
, at equal distance from westly
Chinon
Chinon () is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department, Centre-Val de Loire, France.
The traditional province around Chinon, Touraine, became a favorite resort of French kings and their nobles beginning in the late 15th and early 16th centuri ...
and eastly
Loches
Loches () is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department, central France.
It is situated southeast of Tours by road, on the left bank of the river Indre.
History
Loches (the Roman ''Leucae'') grew up around a monastery founded about 500 by St. ...
.
Sainte-Maure de Touraine is an unpasteurized cheese made from full fat goat's milk.
It has the form of a small log,
around 16–17 cm in length, and weighs at least 250 g. It is white and soft under a greyish moldy rind and is rolled in wood ash. It has a straw through its centre, marked by the
AOC seal and a number indicating the producer. The straw is used, in the making, to keep the roll together. The finished cheese has 45% milk fat.
Quality control
Protected since 1990 by the AOC Seal, Sainte-Maure de Touraine is made with traditional methods. It should not be confused with "Sainte-Maure", also produced in Touraine, but without meeting the stringent AOC production criteria. "Sainte-Maure" is the industrial counterpart of the high-quality, traditionally made, Sainte-Maure de Touraine. Their straw is not marked by a seal, thus differentiating them from AOC cheeses.
Production
1,065 tons of Sainte-Maure de Touraine was produced in 2003,
58% on dairies and 42% on farms. Since it became an
AOC in 1990, its production has strongly increased, from 275 tons (a nearly 300% increase). It is now the second-largest produced goat's cheese AOC in France, just behind
Crottin de Chavignol
Crottin de Chavignol is a goat cheese produced in the Loire Valley. This cheese is the claim to fame for the village of Chavignol, France, which has only two hundred inhabitants.
History
The small cylindrical goat cheese from the area around Ch ...
.
See also
*
List of goat 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 che ...
References
External links
{{French cheeses
French cheeses
Goat's-milk cheeses