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AOC — PDO — Rhône-Alpes
In the valley that shares its name, facing Mont-Blanc, the monks of the abbaye d'Abondance were already maturing this cheese in the 14th century, even supplying the table of the papal conclave in Avignon.
Cooked pressed cheese from Rhône-Alpes, PDO (AOP) since 1996.
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Abondance is a cheese inextricably bound to its abbey and its valley. It was in the 11th century that the monks of the abbaye d'Abondance, established in the heart of the eponymous valley in Haute-Savoie, began making this cow's milk cheese on alpages reaching altitudes of more than 2,400 metres. The alpages around the monastery, dominated by Mont-Blanc, provided exceptional grazing conditions. The vallée d'Abondance soon became famous for its herds and its cheese.
It was in 1381 that this rural cheese became a prestige commodity: the abbey's monks dispatched fifteen quintals of Abondance to the conclave of Avignon, convened at the height of the Western Schism to elect a pope. This conclave consecrated Clement VII, the first Avignon antipope — meaning it was he, and not the Pope in Rome, who tasted the Savoyard cheese. This event proved a turning point: Abondance ceased to be a simple farmhouse cheese and became a currency of exchange, a prestigious good gracing the finest tables of the Cour de Savoie.
Abondance had to wait until 1990 to obtain an AOC — almost half a century after Reblochon (1958). Why such late recognition for so ancient a cheese? Probably because it remained little known, produced in small quantities, and rarely commercialised before the 20th century. European PDO status followed in 1996.
Abondance was not merely named after the valley. The cattle breed that produces it also bears this name: the Abondance cow, with its mahogany coat, particularly well adapted to high altitudes thanks to a physique that allows it to climb mountain slopes with ease. In the Middle Ages, the valley's monks and peasants developed a distinct breed adapted to the mountains: hardy, a good milker, and capable of surviving harsh alpine winters. The survival of the Abondance breed relies precisely on this PDO (AOP) cheese sector, which secures an outlet for its milk.
This inextricable link — cheese, breed, valley — is ancient: traditionally, Abondance cheese was made exclusively from the milk of this breed; only in recent decades has the PDO specification also permitted the Tarentaise and Montbéliarde breeds. To make Abondance required Abondance cows; to sustain the breed requires marketable cheeses.
Appearance
Large wheel of 6–12 kg, washed and brushed rind, beige to orange (paler than a Reblochon), ivory to pale yellow paste, characteristic small round holes (lenticels), slightly concave sides
Taste
Mild and rounded, melting, with floral and herbaceous alpage notes, a light hint of hazelnut with extended maturation, very little pungency
Aroma
Floral and herbaceous, gentle, evocative of alpine pastures, especially in summer–autumn after alpage
Texture
Uncooked pressed, supple, melting, creamy, homogeneous, never dry, almost buttery on the palate
The slightly concave (inward-curving) sides of Abondance are no manufacturing accident: moulding, carried out in a traditional wooden hoop, gives it this characteristic concave shape. As with Beaufort, this distinctive geometry is required by the product specification and bears witness to artisanal production.
raw milk compulsory, from Abondance, Tarentaise or Montbéliarde breeds. Two milkings per day.
slow coagulation, approximately 35–40 minutes, at a temperature of 35–40 °C.
ladled into shallow truncated-conical moulds. Draining and progressive pressing.
brief soaking in cold brine.
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Abondance is best enjoyed at room temperature, taken out of the refrigerator 30 minutes beforehand. Its rounded, melting character pairs wonderfully with a punchier Reblochon or a Tomme de Savoie. In cooking, it is the star ingredient of Berthoud, a traditional Savoyard dish of oven-baked melted cheese — its recipe is today a Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG (STG)). It also melts deliciously into a fondue shared with Beaufort and Reblochon (the authentic “Fondue Savoyarde”). Wine pairing: Roussette de Savoie (the ideal white), Apremont, Mondeuse blanche, or even a light red such as Mondeuse rouge.
Since: 1990
Area covered: 176 communes of Haute-Savoie — vallée d'Abondance, Chablais, Aravis, pays du Mont-Blanc
Key requirements: Abondance, Tarentaise and Montbéliarde breeds
Since: 1996
Area covered: 176 communes of Haute-Savoie — vallée d'Abondance, Chablais, Aravis, pays du Mont-Blanc
Key requirements: Raw milk compulsory, min. 100 days maturation, weight 6–12 kg, concave sides compulsory, washed and brushed rind
The Syndicat interprofessionnel du fromage Abondance (SIFA) is the defence and management organisation (ODG) for the product specification.
Trade association
Artisan cheesemaker
Dairy cooperative
Artisanal industry
GAEC
Dairy co-operative
Get listed and reach more lovers of regional produce.
Request a listingDairy cooperative
The cooperative recounts that it was founded in 1971, with nineteen members and two employees, and established itself in Thônes in 1976. A first Tomme and Raclette workshop was set up there in 1978; refitted in 1983, it enabled the processing of four thousand litres of milk per day according to the dairy, and that same year a technician post was created to monitor farmhouse production. According to the website, the retail shop and visitor tour route date back to 1987.
A division of labour lies at the heart of its model: farmhouse cheeses are made on the farm by member producers, whilst the cooperative handles the affinage, providing customised quality monitoring for each. It states that it was created specifically to pool these resources—maturing, sales, quality control—in order to preserve traditional on-farm production.
Its cellars are unlike any other: in 2007, the cooperative acquired a four-hundred-metre former railway tunnel between Samoëns and Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval, on a line closed to traffic in 1959. The tunnel had initially served as a mushroom farm, then as a curing house, before an affineur moved in and the cooperative began having its cheeses matured there on contract. It has since equipped the tunnel (electricity, shelving, loading bay) and presents it as one of the last natural cellars in the region.
Lastly, the cooperative runs a direct-sales shop at 40 Avenue d'Annecy in Thônes, open Monday to Saturday and on Sunday mornings.
Mondial du Fromage et des Produits Laitiers · Tours
| Address | 40 Av. d'Annecy Za, 74230 Thônes, France |
| 04 50 02 05 60 | |
| reblochon-thones.com | |
| Facebook page | |
| Visits | Yes (shop + factory tours by appointment) |
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Part of the production is certified organic, since 2007. |
