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Limousin
A recipe “mistake” turned source of pride: in Corrèze, Fôte des Bergères owes its name, and its charm, to those who first tasted it whilst shaking their heads.
Bloomy-rind cheese from Limousin.
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Fôte des Bergères is an ewe's milk cheese from Corrèze, once said to have been made by the shepherdesses of Champs de Brach. In the early 2000s, a group of dairy sheep farmers from Limousin decided to revive this traditional recipe.
The cheese-making farmers had the shepherdesses taste their cheese. Delight and discouragement mingled: “This ewe's milk cheese is wonderful... But it isn't the one we used to make. You must have gone wrong somewhere! Mind you, that mistake of yours is rather good.” Encouraged by those who had tasted it, they decided to share their “mistake” and christened it “fôte”, in tribute to the shepherdesses. A farm that sells it recounts the same story: the result differed from the original recipe, but its qualities won the shepherdesses over, and the cheese kept the name Fôte des Bergères.
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Today, three farmhouse ewe's milk cheese producers in Corrèze make it; it can only be found from them, at the farm or at local markets. The Syndicat des Producteurs de Fromages Fermiers du Limousin, based in Tulle, is the point of contact.
Appearance
Soft cheese with a bloomy rind, its off-white rind shading towards blue-grey or brown depending on the maturing cellar.
Texture
Ivory-coloured paste with a firm, more or less creamy texture.
Taste
Distinctive, unique yet mild.
raw ewe's milk farmhouse cheese.
crafted by Corrèze cheese-making farmers from the milk of their dairy ewes.
on a bed of straw.
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To appreciate all its flavours, Fôte is savoured plain. If kept in the refrigerator, take it out an hour before tasting. It can be found all year round.
No official quality mark (PDO (AOP), PGI (IGP), Label Rouge) protects Fôte des Bergères. It remains a farmhouse speciality, made by three ewe's milk cheese producers in Corrèze.
No producer is listed for this product yet.