from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
Welcome to the world of Picodon
The Picodon AOP cheese,
(also called the Picodon de la Drôme AOP
or Picodon d'Ardèche AOP), is 29%, lightly spicy to
spicy goats' milk; pasteurized and unpasteurized versions are available. The cheese’s spiciness
depends on the cheese's maturity.
The ages of Picodon AOP
The youngest cheese,
the Picodon Jeune, has a white or a bluish edible rind and is aged from 8-12 days; it is likely to be in your salad or mixed with olive oil and herbs as a
spread. Then, from twelve days to one
month, the next stage, the Picodon Mi-affine, will be cooked in pastries,
prepared as a cream of Picodon sauce or part of another recipe. More mature Picodon AOP cheeses will have
been aged for at least 30 days (Picodon Affine) and come with an ivory or
darker rind; they will be on the cheese platter. The mature Picodons come with
tastes and spiciness that depend on the way the cheese was aged. The Picodon
Affiné Lave passes through alternating periods of aging and washing with clear
water and is called the Affiné Méthode Dieulefit, or washed in wine, the
Affiné Lavé. These mature cheeses are considered a step up from the younger
Picodons and they have a bite that can surprise the uninitiated, though they
are not the strongest of France's goat's cheeses.
Picodon AOP
www.flickr.com/photos/vialbost/14619321321/
Picodon AOP was one of the
first goats' cheese to receive a French AOC (now an AOP) and that was in 1983.
The cheese's origins, however, date back to the 14th or 15th century.
The cheese is produced
in small discs that weigh from 45-60 grams (1.59-2.11 oz) with some slightly
heavier. The best Picodon AOP cheeses are made with unpasteurized milk on the farms
where the goats are raised with a number of larger dairies producing cheeses
made with pasteurized milk. Nearly all the Picodon AOP cheese comes from
the departments of Drôme and Ardèche in the administrative region of the Auvergne-Rhone-Alps.
The meaning of Picodon.
The
citizens of Ardèche and Drôme, and others in the region of the
Auvergne-Rhône–Alps, will not be surprised that Picodon AOP is a spicy cheese.
Nearly all the long-time residents of the region speak or understand some of the old Occitan
language and Picodon just means spicy in Occitan.
(Occitan
is the language that, over 200 years ago, lost out to modern French as the
language that would unite the French nation. Nevertheless, Occitan or one of
its dialects, like Provencal or Niçoise, is still spoken
in many homes in many parts of France; that is apart from perfect
French).
Members of the AOP production team.
For
at least seven months of the year, the goats are
free-range. They will be eating grass and wild herbs, hawthorn leaves, acorns,
and chestnuts. In the
winter, they are fed grasses collected from the same area during the summer,
and as may be expected, the winter hay and dried grasses produce a cheese with
a slightly different taste.
In
a restaurant, when you have chosen your three or four kinds of cheese from the
cheese trolley or have ordered a pre-selected cheese plate that includes
Picodon AOP, do remember that its flavor can overpower milder cheeses so enjoy
the Picodon after the others.
Picodon at different ages
Picodon AOP on your menu:
Velouté de Potimarron aux Éclats de Châtaigne et
Crème de Picodon – A velvety soup made with pumpkin and flavored with slices of chestnuts and a cream of Picodon cheese sauce.
A velvety cabbage soup with Picodon
La Salade Picodon: Picodon Chaud Dans sa
Feuille de Brick, Lardons, Salade Verte. A Picodon AOP salad made with hot Picodon
cheese served inside Feuille de Brick. Feuille de
Brick (often just called Brik) is a flaky thin durum wheat semolina-based
pastry of Tunisian origin. Here the pastry stuffed with Picodon cheese is
accompanied by bacon pieces and a green salad.
Carpaccio de Boeuf Mariné et Son Croustillant de Picodon – A beef Carpaccio made with marinated beef and
accompanied by a crisply grilled (or fried) Picodon cheese.
Tiramisu
with strawberries and Picodon
For the
Recipe click here.:
Salade au Magret
de Canard Fumé et Flan du Terroir au Picodon. - A salad of smoked duck breast served with a traditional tart made
with Picodon cheese. (French flans are usually tarts made using pâte brisée, a
crusty pastry).
Suprême de Poulet De l’Ardèche Sauce Crème de Picodon, Crique
Ardéchoise. Breast of Ardèche chicken served with a Picodon cream sauce and
accompanied by a Crique Ardéchoise, which is a traditional Ardèche potato
pie. A crique in your French-English dictionary may
indicate a creek or even a fiord; however, the word crique here
comes from the Occitan language and not modern French.
A Crique Ardéchoise, a traditional Ardeche potato pie.
Picodon, Picodon, and more Picodon
If you are traveling around
this area, you will see other cheeses with the word Picodon on the label,
though without the AOP. These different Picodon cheeses are traditional
variations of the more well-known Picodon AOP and were created around the same
time as the Picodon AOP, probably in the 14th or 15th century; however, they
have slightly different textures and flavors. Many of these other Picodon
cheeses are excellent, but only available locally as they do not produce enough
for commercial distribution outside a very limited area. On the plus side, they
will cost you less than their more famous cousin.
Cheese on sale at the covered market in Libourne, France.
www.flickr.com/photos/londonexpat/49535292068/
When buying a Picodon
AOC cheese, or one of its close cousins, try and do so in fromagerie, a cheese
shop. A fromagerie has trained, knowledgeable staff and will be able to explain
the differences among the various Picodons and vacuum pack your purchases if you are
buying some cheese to take home. For the link to buying cheese in France and taking it
home, click here.
Warm goat’s cheese salad.
The Picodon Fete
If you visit the Auvergne- Rhône-Alpes, remember that the third
Saturday and Sunday in July brings you the Fête de Picodon. (Check as dates can change). The fete is held in
the village of Saoû, in the department of Drôme. The village of Saoû, with less
than 600 inhabitants, is the Picodon AOP producers' promotional center. Here you may enjoy Picodon AOP cheese
tastings together with local wines. The fete also has attractions planned for
children that include parades with clowns wandering around. On Saturday, there
is a human circus that everyone can enjoy, and Saturday night brings several
free concerts. Of course, you will have to pay for all the snacks, plates of
French Fries, cheeses, and wines that you consume. On Sunday, there is a huge
luncheon that you may join in, for a very reasonable price; however, you must
order a place in advance, and you may do so via the internet. Usually, the
Sunday includes a large market selling nearly everything under the sun:
antiques, would-be antiques, modern artworks, fruits, wines, other cheeses, and
more. Within 30 km (19 miles) of Saoû, there are plenty of B and B's and hotels
up to 3 and 4 stars but book ahead.
The village of
Saoû
www.flickr.com/photos/97319257@N07/9023292346/
For the French-language
website of the "La Fête du Picodon" click or copy/paste the link
below. The website is easily understood in English with the Google or
Bing translation apps.
The Confrérie de Picodon
The Confrérie de
Picodon is the brotherhood and sisterhood of the Knights of the Picodon Cheese.
These brave knights dress up in would-be ancient costumes, and as interested
parties work to promote the Picodon AOP cheese. They will be in costume during
the fete, and at other times when they will be checking that you are only sold
the genuine article.
The Confrérie de Picodon
Apart from promoting the Picodon AOP cheese, the village of Saoû
along with other communities close by has activities throughout the year, from
rock climbing to music festivals. Apart from these activities, there are many
different cheeses and wines from the Ardèche and the Drôme. On sale during the fete and on
each village’s market day will be honey (especially the chestnuts and chestnut honey from the Ardèche), poultry, lamb, snails, lavender, Ardèche Safran, the herb, olives, olive oil and much more. The Romans settled in this
region 2,000 years ago, and they brought many of the fruit trees,
including almonds, apricots, peaches, and cherries, among others. In the valleys of the Ardèche,
those trees have created orchards that produce fruit that is sold all over
France. Call your local French Government Tourist Office for the dates of all
the happenings in the village of Saoû and the departments of Drôme and Ardèche.
Music at the fete
The English Language
website of the Rhone-Alps:
--------------------------------
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
Copyright 2010, 2016. 2020, 2023
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