Something of a specialty this cheese. Not because Le Saulzais is made from raw ewe’s milk but because it hails from the Berry province in the Loire, France. If there is one thing the Loire valley is not famous for, it is ewe milk cheese. Subsequently Le Saulzais is a small scale production, farmstead as it is. From the farm Les Bruyères in Saulzais-le-Potier. Along the A71 from Bourges in the direction of Clermond-Ferrand further south. Interesting road trip this, Clermond-Ferrand has a lot to offer. The Berry province is way more famous for their chèvre such as Crottin de Chavignol and Valençay to mention a couple.
Le Saulzais – a puck?
Looks like a somewhat big puck with its 300 grams. At this stage I have to admit that pucks are not my cup of tea, not ice hockey either, so what a real puck is like, I do not know. Just assumptions this. But, it has a circular shape, the cheese, that’s for sure. A fine rind, a little bit bloomy, but most of all marked by Geotrichum candidum. You can see that from the nice pattern of the rind. Some think this pattern is rather disgusting, because it makes them think of crawling worms. Not so with me, who has a fascination of rinds in general, especially those where mother nature has had her say.
Taste and texture
Pretty firm, not Alp cheese firm, turns creamy on the tongue. Matured for about four weeks, which also means it dries out a bit and becomes slightly crumbly, but in no way to the extent it falls apart when you cut a piece. Subtle taste of milk.
To drink
Some local brew. Even though Sancerre and Chèvre is a classic in this area, I see no reason not to pair Sancerre with Le Saulzais as well. Just one thing; choose a slightly mature Sancerre for this cheese.