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Fermentation Atlas

Cheese from France, Causses limestone plateaus

Bleu des Causses PDOBleu des Causses

Whole cow milk is renneted at 31–35 °C with Penicillium roqueforti, cut, stirred and moulded without pressing so gaps stay between the grains. The wheels are dry-salted, pierced with needles and ripened at least 12 days in natural limestone caves cooled by fleurine air vents. They are then wrapped and matured cold until at least day 70. Made in 7 steps over 3 months – 7.2 months. The longest step, wrap and mature cold, takes 2.3–6.2 months (Ministère de l'agriculture 2018) and runs at -4–4 °C (Ministère de l'agriculture 2018). Penicillium roqueforti and Cultures of bacteria, yeasts and moulds shown to be safe by use do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step2.3–6.2 monthsSet[bdc-cdc-2017]Wrap and mature cold
Temperature-4–4 °CSet[bdc-cdc-2017]Wrap and mature cold
Fully documentedCheese3 months – 7.2 monthsPDO (AOC 1979, France)Family: Blue-veined cheese family (Roquefort as template)More blue cheesesMore from France

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe rules fix times and temperatures but no amounts. One cheese is a flat cylinder 19–21 cm across, 8–12 cm high and 2.2–3.3 kg.
Whole cow milk · Raw or heat-treated; not standardised or homogenised; kept on the farm at most 48 hours[bdc-cdc-2017]
Rennet · The only coagulant allowed[bdc-cdc-2017]
Penicillium roqueforti · Plus other cultures of bacteria, yeasts and moulds shown to be safe by use[bdc-cdc-2017]
Dry salt · Rubbed on the faces and rim in two passes; brining is banned[bdc-cdc-2017]
Calcium chloride[bdc-cdc-2017]
Starter: Penicillium roqueforti, with lactic cultures

Total time across the recorded steps: 3 months – 7.2 months

Start
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31–35 °Cshapes, not to countPenicillium roquefortiYeastsMoulds

What changes: Rennet and blue mould spores go into whole milk at 31–35 °C

Step 1 of 7
Rennet the milk
Time
up to 36 h
Set
Temperature
31–35 °C
Set
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Penicillium roqueforti
Yeasts
Moulds

Output: curd.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

What makes this one different

Bleu des Causses is the cow-milk cousin of Roquefort. It ripens in the same kind of fleurine caves on the Causses plateaus, but is made from whole cow milk, which may be heat-treated, and is dry-salted rather than brined.

Milk
Whole cow milk, raw or heat-treated; at least 120 days of grazing a year
Ripening
At least 70 days from renneting, at most 190 days in cold maturation
Composition
At least 50 g fat per 100 g dry matter; at least 53 g dry matter per 100 g cheese
Size
Flat cylinder 19–21 cm across, 8–12 cm high, 2.2–3.3 kg

Related ferments

Safety

Raw or heat-treated milk. The rules ban freezing the milk, curd or fresh cheese and require at least 70 days before sale, with cold maturation at −4 to +4 °C.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

A 1925 law kept non-sheep cheeses out of Roquefort, which pushed local makers to build a cow-milk blue. First called Bleu de l'Aveyron and defined by decree in 1945, it became the appellation Bleu des Causses by decree on 21 May 1979.

  1. [bdc-cdc-2017] Ministère de l'agriculture 2018, Cahier des charges de l'appellation d'origine protégée « Bleu des Causses », homologated by arrêté of 8 March 2017, version approved by Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/1244 (BO-Agri notice)spec
  2. [bord2016] Bord C., Guerinon D., Lebecque A. 2016, Impact of heating on sensory properties of French PDO blue cheeses, Food Science and Technology International 22(5):377–388 (abstract)paper