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TSG — Rhône-Alpes
A porcelain dish, melted Abondance cheese, a dash of white Savoie wine — Berthoud was born on the corner of a bar in Thonon-les-Bains, and ended up receiving its very own European law.
Traditional dish from Rhône-Alpes, TSG (STG) since 2020.
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Berthoud originated in the early 20th century at the Cercle Républicain, a bistro in the Concise district of Thonon-les-Bains, run by a Berthoud family from the commune of Abondance, in the vallée d'Abondance. Customers ate a dish made of melted Abondance cheese, seasoned with garlic, white wine, pepper, and nutmeg — a dish that eventually took the name of the family who prepared it. The INAO itself mentions it on the official sheet for Abondance cheese, as one of the typical uses of this cheese once melted.
Following the approval of its specifications by INAO's national committee for Protected Geographical Indications, Labels Rouges and Traditional Specialities Guaranteed in May 2019, Berthoud was officially recognised as a Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG) by the European Commission on 6 September 2020. It thus became the second French traditional speciality to be registered, after Moules de Bouchot in 2013, and the first French culinary TSG.
The name 'Berthoud' is attested in several 20th-century Savoyard cookery books — notably 'Cuisine Savoyarde : recettes traditionnelles et modernes' by Eugénie Julie (1978) — as well as on wrapping paper from the Fermiers Savoyards used until 1985, alongside recipes for fondue savoyarde and raclette. At the time of its TSG recognition, the sector counted 36 authorised restaurateurs, brought together within the Syndicat Interprofessionnel du Berthoud.
Appearance
served in an individual ovenproof porcelain dish, with a golden to brown crust on the surface
Aroma
aromas of melted cheese heightened with garlic and white wine
Taste
melted Abondance cheese, softened by the Madère or Porto, with a touch of garlic and nutmeg
Texture
melting and creamy whilst the dish is hot, turning stringy and stretchy as it cools — hence the individual format, allowing it to be eaten quickly
pour in 3 to 4 cl of PDO Vin de Savoie, then 1 to 2 cl of PDO Madère or PDO Porto.
add pepper, and optionally a pinch of nutmeg.
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Berthoud is enjoyed hot, straight from the oven, accompanied by bread and, according to custom, potatoes cooked in their skins, a green salad, and a platter of charcuterie. It pairs naturally with a Savoie white wine.
Since: 2020
Key requirements: Individual hot dish that must be made from melted PDO (AOP) Abondance cheese (minimum 180 g per person, rind removed), PDO Vin de Savoie (3 to 4 cl), PDO Madère or PDO Porto (1 to 2 cl), garlic, pepper, optional nutmeg. Served in an individual porcelain dish ('assiette à Berthoud', 12 to 15 cm in diameter, 2.5 to 4.5 cm in height), baked in the oven for 8 to 15 minutes. No other ingredient permitted in the preparation. Second French Traditional Speciality Guaranteed after Moules de Bouchot (2013), and the first French culinary TSG (STG).
Specifications approved by INAO's national PGI (IGP)/Label Rouge/TSG committee in May 2019.
Unlike a PDO or a PGI, a TSG does not protect a geographical origin but a recipe and know-how: the Berthoud specifications can legally be followed outside its native Chablais. The Syndicat du Berthoud itself points this out — protection covers the name, the ingredients and their quantities, the dish and the method, not a demarcated territory. In practice, the sector remains concentrated in Haute-Savoie: 36 restaurateurs authorised by the Syndicat Interprofessionnel du Berthoud at the time of TSG recognition in 2020.
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