Comte is an ancient cooked and pressed cheese made from raw milk in the Jura Massif region of France. For more than 1000 years throughout the villages of Eastern France, farmers have been creating a unique and tasty cheese known today as Comte. Today, more than 2500 small, family farms and their cows produce the highest quality milk required to make this cheese loved within France and throughout the world. The yearly production averages 1.6 million wheels of which only about 10% is exported outside France.
To buy Comte AOP on line, click here.
In 1958, Comte received the prestigious AOC (appellation d’origine contrôlée) designation which protects the production and quality of this iconic French Cheese. In 1996, the AOC designation was folded into the EU’s PDO (protected designation of origin) certification. AOC is now modified to AOP (appellation d’origine protégée) to reflect its designation within the EU PDO scheme. For a complete list of cheeses, wines and foods protected under the EU DOOR scheme, click here.
As early as the 13th Century, Comte has been produced in “fruitieres”, a cooperative-style group of farmers who share the milk collected daily to be made into cheese. According to official documents, Deservilliers became the birthplace of Comte in 1253.
Most of those 2500 farms are home to less than 50 cows, which must be either Montbeliarde or French Simmental breeds. Under the EU PDO, the farmers must touch each cow at least two times each day, which brings the farmer and the animal into a more intimate relationship. This rule makes it easier for the farmer to recognize health issues early and address them before they can harm the cow.
At every farm we visited this month, the farmers addressed each cow by name (they also have tags which are registered with the consortium). While milking robots are in the process of being prohibited by the PDO, milking machines are approved. However, the first “squirt” from each teat must be made by the farmer. Again, this keeps the farmer aware of the cow; its milk and teats, which is where mastitis starts. On our final day of the 2019 Comte tour, we visited two farmers up in the Alpage and stayed for the afternoon milking. After attaching the milking machine, both brothers would lovingly pat the cows before moving on to the next task.
Other regulations of the EU PDO scheme include:
All cows providing milk for production of Comte must be Montbeliarde and French Simmental breeds. Montbeliarde makes up 95% of the milk and the other 5% comes from the French Simmental. The brothers we met on the last day of our tour are planning to cross breed the two in an effort to produce a cow that accentuates the best of both breeds.
Raw milk must be used to make Comte.
Each cow must have one hectare of grazing land (2.5 acres per cow). The cows graze in the pastures and alpage from spring to autumn and local hay in the winter. No fermented feed is allowed. When we visited one farm, the farmer was baling hay from a pasture to be put up for winter use. Certain supplements are allowed to assure the right dietary needs are met but GMOs are prohibited.
The three designated areas of the Jura Massif where Comte can be produced are Doubs, Jura and a part of Ain. The elevation of this area varies from 1500 to 4500 feet.
To buy Comte AOP on line, click here.
The minimum maturing time for a wheel is 4 months per the PDO; however the average is closer to 8 months with some wheels aged 12, 15, 18, 24 or even 36 months.
Each fruitiere (cheesemaking facility) must collect milk daily from farms located no further than 25 km (16 miles). The three fruitieres we visited were owned by a maximum of 13 farms. The farmers form a cooperative-style alliance, in which they own shares, and hire cheesemakers who are employees of the fruitiere and do not own shares in the coop. One fruitiere we visited was a simple cheesemaking facility and another had a full-blown cheese and souvenir shop that even included a local post office.
The size of the wheels must fall within a narrow set of parameters with the average being 80 pounds with a diameter of 3 feet and a thickness of 4 inches.
In researching for this article I came across this Comte 20 Point Assessment Scale from 1996. Because the PDO is constantly being updated, it is reasonable to assume some of the following has been altered, but this chart gives you a good overview of how the Affineur grades each wheel.
To buy Comte AOP on line, click here.
Comte is graded on a scale of 1 to 20. The minimum acceptable score is an average of above 12. Wheels with a score between 12 and 15 receive a brown band; wheels with a score of above 15 to 20 receive a green band. According to French Cheeses, (Copyright 1996, Eyewitness Handbooks) the minimum score for taste is 3 out of 9 and a 0 in any graded area leads to elimination from the test.
| Aspect | Mark | Ideal Conditions and Reference |
| Overall Appearance | 1 of 20 | Rounded sides; clear-cut form: no joint between sides, top, and bottom; well-proportioned; no bulging; no stretching |
| Quality of rind on top, bottom and sides | 1.5 of 20 | Treated with morge; stippled (with cloth marks); solid (not crumbly); clean (dry, smooth, not stained or coated); even (light orange to ochre); no defects, no cracks |
| Appearance of the cut and eyes | 3.5 of 20 | Holes should be present: 10 to 20 eyes on a half cheese; round, clear, cherry sized, well spread, no grooves or other defects |
| Quality of pate | 5 of 20 | Even color (creamy to light orange-yellow); supple (slightly elastic); smooth (not too moist oily); medium resistance to deformation; fine pate (no little particles when cheese is reduced in mouth); should not stick to the palate |
| Quality of Taste | 9 of 20 | Simple (no defects); nutty (walnut); fruity (apricot, dried fruits); Lactic (milk, butter); lightly roasted (caramel); grassy (hay); balanced (sour, salty, sweet, bitter); no tingling, lingering taste |
References:
https://ec.europa.eu/info/food-farming-fisheries/food-safety-and-quality/certification/quality-labels/eu-quality-food-and-drink/comte_en
http://www.comtecheese.co.uk/comte-history/
Next up will be a in depth look at the visits we made to Comte farms and the cows…
Join me this Saturday at Blue Haven Bee where we will be celebrating the 6th anniversary of BHB and a belated celebration of Bastille Day. I will be serving all French Cheese Plates for $10 for 3 cheeses and $15 for 5 cheeses plus lots of good stuff that makes cheese taste even better.
In addition to being an American Cheese Society Certified Cheese Professional, I am a Certified ServSafe Food Production Manager with certifications that also include ServSafe Certified Instructor and Proctor. I am available for cheese events, cheese program development, cheese training, food safety training and 3rd party food safety auditing. See my About Me and Resume pages for more details or call me at 360 921 9908 to discuss availability.
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