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1) INTRODUCTION
Over the centuries, we humans have mastered the methods of preserving
nature’s seasonal bounty for the times when nature is cruel and less generous.
The abundant milk harnessed from dairy animals becomes cheese for the winter
months. Similarly, fresh grapes which last only days are processed into wine for
future delight. Therefore, it is not surprising that cheese and wine are savoured
together in countries with temperate climates where grapevines and dairy
animals are nurtured (Fletcher, 2007). Turophiles refer to people who love
cheese while oenophiles are people who love wine.
The Anglo-Saxon saying “good wine carries a man to heaven” implies that
a cup of excellent wine is able to bring about a feeling of euphoria to whoever
drinks it. This is attributed to its psychotropic (intoxicating) effect besides its
daintiness and nutritional benefits. Wine is also frequently mentioned in the bible
from Noah and his grape vines to Jesus perhaps the finest wine maker to date.
Wine is an alcoholic drink made from fermented grape juice. Growing grapes for
wine is one of the most essential agriculture activities in the globe. French wines
originated in the 6th century B.C. The early vineyards was grown and planted by
the Greeks and the Romans. Around the 5th
century A.D., the church became thedominant keeper of the vine and the primary producer of wines. Wine is still
employed in the Catholic Church as a substitute for the blood of Christ which is
an indication of the key role the beverage has played in Christianity.
French bask in the reputation of being the world’s greatest producer of
high quality wine. Wines produced in France are highly sought after judging by
the prices people are willing to pay just so that they could savour its
exquisiteness. According to Terroir-France.com (2010), the most expensive wine
sold on retail is the Romanée Conti which costs over 3,000 USD per bottle while
the limited edition, vintage 1787 Chateau Lafite is auctioned at 160,000 USD.
General Charles de Gaulle who was a French general and statesman who
led the Free French forces during World War II wittily remarked, "Comment
voulez-vous gouverner un pays qui a deux cents quarante-six variétés de
fromage?" which can be translated as “how do you govern a nation that has 246
varieties of cheese?”. He was commenting on the overwhelmingly numerous
variety of cheese in France or better known as “fromage” by the people there.
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Although the Charles de Gaulle quote indicates that there were 246 varieties of
cheeses in France in his time, nowadays there are approximately 500 varieties of
this smooth dairy product (D’Silva, n.d). With that much sorts of cheese, even
Mickey Mouse could be puzzled!
France produces almost 400 different varieties of cheese; each one is as
distinctive as a finger print. This wide selection, more than any other country has
to offer, includes cheeses made from cow’s, ewe’s or goat’s milk, or in
combination. Each region has its specialty; Normandy, France’s kingdom of milk
and cream, is famous for unctuous Camembert and Pont l’Evêque; the Loire
Valley and Provence for the tangy goat’s milk cheeses; Alsace for robust
Munster; the Alpine region for firmer, subtly-flavored cheeses, such as Reblochon
and Beaumont; the Paris area for the world’s most prestigious cheese, Brie, even
from the Pyrénées comes Chiberta, firm, slightly nutty-flavoured, a specialty of
which the hardy Basque people are proud.
Among other things, cheese and wine share lots of commonalities. They
may be consumed while still fresh and young, or in their complex form when
they are aged and mature (by which their price would soar tremendously).
Cheese and wine partner so naturally even though they exist in multitudinous
varieties.
2) TYPES
a) Types of French Wines
Vast acres of vineyards in France make it literally produces hundreds of different
types of French wine. Known wine producing areas in France are regulated bythe INAO. Every appellation in France is defined by INAO, in regards to the
individual regions particular wine "personality". If a wine fails to meet the INAO's
strict criteria it is declassified into a lower appellation or even into Vin de Pays or
Vin de Table. With the number of appellations in France too numerous to be
stated, they are easily defined into one of the main wine producing regions such
as Alsace, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, and Loire.
i) Alsace
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This region is very unique. It is also the only region in France that sells its wine
according to the name of the grape diversity. Another ironic fact is that Alsace is
not only an important economic region with a highly dense population, but also
an important agricultural and wine producing region. Although Alsace is one of
France’s northernmost areas, its summers are hot and sunny and it is the driest
region in the country. Winegrowing is a top priority here, and the region
produces fine aromatic and heady white wines. There are eight varietal
denominations permitted under AOC Alsace: Chasselas, Gewürztraminer , Muscat ,
Pinot , Tokay-Pinot Gris (now officially just Pinot Gris), Pinot Noir , Riesling, and
Sylvaner . Auxerrois has functioned as a phantom variety under the broad
shouldered "Pinot" label, and has in the past been called 'Pinot Auxerrois' to
ensure its use. Auxerrois yields such unique wine that it deserves the credit, and
though it is not officially sanctioned under the law, more estates market
Auxerrois eponymously each year. With this range of wines permitted, all
Alsatian producers sell a lineup of most of these wines. Most of these estates
make at least a second tier: cuvées that they determine to be superior to a
'generic' varietal labelling. The basic character of each of the AOC Alsace grapes
is as follows Auxerrois, Chasselas, Gewürztraminer , Muscat , Pinot d'Alsace, Pinot
Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir , Riesling, and Sylvaner .
ii) Bordeaux
The city of Bordeaux and the surrounding region occupy the coveted lands
dividing northern and southern France. This perfect balance between northern
and southern characteristics also appears in Bordeaux’s vineyards and wines.
Each Bordeaux wine has its own personality, intimately related to the special
touch of the master winemaker or estate owner. Blending permits the specific
elements from each variety to mix and bind together to create new elements. In
the case of aromas, hundreds of active molecules in the wine interact during the
blending process to create a new wine with a complexity, delicacy, and richness
that surpass by far the simple addition of the characteristics of each of the
assembled wines. It is easy to understand why the decision to plant a certain
type of vine is of utmost importance since it has a direct impact on the quality
and personality of the final product. This also influences food and wine
combinations, and the selecting, buying and storing of wine. Blending is also a
strategic act. It allows the major brands from Bordeaux to ensure a certain
consistent flavour and overall quality of wines made from hundreds, if not
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thousands of litres of wine purchased from producers via specialized brokers.
Each new vintage gives rise to new blending possibilities, subject to evolving
constraints and taste requirements. Bordeaux is primarily a red wine region,
famous for the wines Château Lafite-Rothschild, Château Latour , Château
Mouton-Rothschild, Château Margaux and Château Haut-Brion from the Médoc
sub-region; Château Cheval Blanc and Château Ausone in Saint-Émilion; and
Château Pétrus and Château Le Pin in Pomerol. The red wines produced are
usually blended, from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and sometimes Cabernet
Franc. Bordeaux also makes dry and sweet white wines, including some of the
world's most famous sweet wines from the Sauternes appellation, such as
Château d'Yquem.
iii)Burgundy
Burgundy has a long history of striving for quality. The Bourbons, who dominated
an area that extended all the way to the North Sea, built its cities and its
vineyards with much brilliance. Burgundy is more terroir-conscious than any
other region, Burgundy is split into the largest number of appellations of any
French region. The top wines from Burgundy's heartland in Côte d'Or command
high prices. The Burgundy region is divided in four major parts; The Cote de
Nuits (from Marsannay-La-Cote down to Nuits-Saint-Georges), The Cote de Beaune (from north of Beaune to Santenay ), The Cote Chalonnaise, and The
Maconnais. Two parts of Burgundy that are occasionally considered as separate
regions are; Beaujolais in the south, close to the Rhône Valley region, where
mostly red wines are made in a fruity style that is usually consumed young.
"Beaujolais Nouveau" is the only wine that can be legally consumed in the year
of its production (Third week end of November); Chablis, halfway between Côte
d'Or and Paris, where white wines are produced on chalky soil giving a more
crisp and steely style than the rest of Burgundy. There are two main grape
varieties used in Burgundy – Chardonnay for white wines, and Pinot Noir for red.
White wines are also sometimes made from Aligoté, and other grape varieties
will also be found occasionally.
iv)Champagne
Champagne, located in eastern France, close to Belgium and Luxembourg, is the
coldest of France's key wine regions and home to its major sparkling wine.Champagne wines can be both white and rosé, type of wine with some of the
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colour typical of a red wine, but only enough to turn it pink. A small amount of
still wine is produced in Champagne (as AOC Coteaux Champenois) of which
some can be red wine. There are 3 AOC in Champagne region, they are
Champagne (Sparkling clear), Coteaux Champenios (Traditional red wine), and
Rosé des Riceys (one of the best french rosé).
v) Loire
The Loire Valley is a strip of France from the Middle Western edge to below Paris.
This region is best known for Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc,
with wineries nestled down against the Loire River. The two wine types most
recognize from this region are Sancerre and Vouvray. The Loire Valley stretches
over a long distance along the River Loire, where grapes variety and wine stylesvary along the river. The four sub regions situated along the river are; Upper
Loire is known for its Sauvignon Blanc, producing wines such as Sancerre AOC,
but also consisting of several VDQS areas. Touraine produces cold climate-styled
white wines (dry, sweet or sparkling) from Chenin Blanc in Vouvray AOC and red
wines from Cabernet Franc in Bourgueil AOC and Chinon AOC. Anjou-Saumur is
similar to the Tourain wines with respect to varieties, but the dry Savennières
AOC and sweet Coteaux du Layon AOC are often more powerful than their
upstream neighbours. Saumur AOC and Saumur-Champigny AOC provide reds,
and Pays Nantais is situated closest to the Atlantic, and Muscadet AOC produces
white wines from the Melon de Bourgogne grape.
b) Types of French Cheese
In France, cheese is traditionally grouped into eight categories, known as les huit
familles de fromage. They need a lot of categories because there are a lot of
cheeses.
i) Fresh Cheese (Fromages Frais)
This cheese is made from cow's milk, goat's milk, or sheep's milk, and is white in
colour. It is rich in water but not aged. Instead of putting rennet, which is used to
prepare some cheeses, the curd is made by adding lactic started to the milk.
This cheese is quite often used in recipes and usually eaten separately,
sometimes as a yogurt. The two popular varieties of French fresh cheeses are
Petit Suisse and Brousse.
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fromage. They need a lot of categories because there are a lot of cheeses.
ii) Soft Cheese with Natural Rind (Les Fromages à Pâte Molle et à
Croûte Fleurie)
It is a soft cow's milk cheese which has a white and floury surface. It is aged for
about a month and is usually served after the main course. Some popular
varieties of soft cheese include Brie, Camembert, Neufchatel cheese and
Chaource.
iii) Soft Cheese with Washed Rind (Les Fromages à Pate Molle et à
Croute Lavée)
Made from cow's milk, soft cheese undergoes a washing procedure which
prevents the formation of surface moulds, and produces a supple and colourful
rind. Some well known varieties of soft cheese include Munster cheese, Pont
l'Eveque and Reblochon cheese.
iv) Pressed Cheese (Fromages à Pate Pressée)
This cheese undergoes a pressure treatment during the processing which drains
some of its moisture content. After this, it is placed in controlled conditions and
aged for few months. During this, it is washed, brushed and turned to create the
rind in a uniform fashion. Cantal and Ossau-Iraty are the two most popular
varieties of pressed cheese.
v) Pressed and Cooked Cheese (Fromages à Pate Pressée et
Cuite)
This cheese is prepared from the curd which is heated for an hour before being
pressed. Usually manufactured in the mountainous regions of France, it is
prepared in large cylinders and ripened for a long time. It is mainly used for
cooking purposes, especially as toppings for hot dishes. Emmental and Gruyère
are some common varieties of pressed and cooked cheese.
vi) Goat Cheese (Fromages de Chèvre)
As the name suggests, this cheese is made from goat's milk. Often this milk is
mixed with cow's milk to form a mi-chevre. The cheese comes in variety of
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shapes and sizes, and two most popular ones are Crottin de Chavignol and
Pouligny-Saint-Pierre.
vii) Blue Cheese (Fromages à Pate Persillées)
This cheese is made primarily from cow's milk with major exception of roquefort
(made from sheep's milk). Having a strong flavour and smell, it is known by the
blue or greenish blue channels that run through it. Some popular varieties of
blue cheese include Bleu de Bresse and Roquefort cheese.
viii) Processed Cheese (Fromages à Pate Fondue)
This cheese is made from other varieties of cheese assorted together. It can be
flavoured with garlic, pepper, herbs, etc., and is typically sold in small portions.
3) DINING ETIQUETTE
Cheese and wine are absolutely central elements of the French diet and French
food. In France, traditionally people ate a warm meal in the middle of the day
and then a lighter (often cold) meal in the evening. This food tradition coincides
with the French philosophy of shutting everything down in the middle of the day
for a well-deserved break. Children go home from school and adults go home to
eat lunch together. This is gradually changing, but in general you will find this to
be true when you visit France.
French adults do generally drink wine in the middle of the day. Colleagues
often go out for lunch together instead of going home, and a glass or two of wine
is considered common practice. Wine has always been an integral part of the
French dining table, perhaps as central to the French table as water is to the
American table. Generally speaking, wine is not overindulged in France; sipping
wine throughout lunch or dinner is a common practice.
French dining etiquette says that one should wait to have their glass
refilled by someone else at the table. With cheese, it's the opposite. A platter of
cheese will be passed around the table and you should take some of each
cheese that you would like to eat and put it on your plate. Traditionally, the
bread sits on the table instead of your plate, and you break off bite-sized pieces
of bread and spread cheese from your own plate onto your bite of bread.
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4) PRODUCTION
Leary and Perret (n.d) recount that quality cheese production can be
summarised into three major stages where each has its own important aims, all
oriented towards flavour, balance, and consistency:
• Manufacture of milk. At this stage, the type of milk to be used is chosen
either from goat, sheep, cow, and buffalo milk. All have different flavour
consequences, particularly due to different types of short-chain fatty
acids. Milking conditions and milk storage sanitation is number one!
• Cheese making process. The milk is treated to maintain quality and
prevent contamination. The type of starters (cultured bacteria).
• The Third Stage: Ageing and/or “Affinage” (refining). Fresh cheese, as the
name implies do not undergo ageing. Sealed ageing: no natural rind -
temperature control and cheese size important. Natural-rind ageing,
affinage, encouragement of positive micro-organisms, control of negative
micro-organisms, regular turning, temperature control, humidity control,
etc.--a labour of love! After this, the cheese is packaged and presented to
the public.
On the other hand, the winemaking process is facilitated by salient stages
and techniques which establish the quality. Bowman (n.d) gave a brief account of
the wine making process which is as follows:
• De-stemming the grapes. The process of removing the grapes from its
clustered stems or shoots is what you mean with the term to de-stem thegrapes. After this initial step, grapes are then placed inside containers or
pressers where the grapes are crushed into pastes that eventually
produce wine must or the extracted liquid from the grapes prior to the
fermentation process. The pomace and the wine must when mixed and let
stand for a certain period of time in vat containers along with its contact
with other components like grape pulp and skin gradually influences the
quality of wine in the process.
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• Adding yeast. Wine yeast is one of the most important components in
wine making since it generally facilitates the fermentation process that
determines the quality of the end-product. The pomace component of the
mixture may be practically used as fertilizer when separated from the
liquid content in this particular phase of the production. Winemakers see
to it that the wine reaches the required color and sugar content before
transferred to another container for the final phase of fermentation.
• Final stage. The culmination of the fermentation process signals the time
for the wine to be either bottled or kept for the wine aging stage.
5) NUTRITIONAL CONTENTS
According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nation (as cited
in Hayes and Laudan, 2009), in 2002 the average French person consumed 60
percent more cheese than the average American, as well as four times the
amount of butter. Astoundingly, the French have substantially lower rates of
heart disease than Americans do. This baffling conundrum sometimes referred to
as the “French Paradox” was once attributed to the healthful components of red
wine that many French people consume.
It came to be a turning point for to the wine sector, worldwide. Stockley,
Simos & Pretorius, (2009) noted that this seemingly illogical theory was firstly
introduced in 1992 by two French scientists, Serge Renaud and Michel de
Lorgeril. The two observed that although the French consumed a substantial
amount of saturated fats (which is one of the main content of cheese), smoke
cigarettes and had high blood pressure, they surprisingly had one of the lowest
rates of cardiovascular disease in the western region. The scientists reported
that people who drink moderate amount of wine, specifically red wine with meals
could reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease for instance heart attacks,
strokes and hypertension as well by a whopping 40% (Stockley, Simos &
Pretorius, 2009).
There are two types of cholesterol, the “Good” cholesterol, or High Density
Lipoprotein (HDL) and the “Bad” cholesterol, or Low Density Lipoprotein. The
“Good” cholesterol removes the “Bad” cholesterol. The LDL, when oxidised can
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be deposited on blood vessel walls where it accumulates to impede blood flow;
ergo, LDL is the main cause of cardiovascular disease. The Australian Wine
research Institute carried out a study and they found out that phenolic
compounds found abundantly in wine, fruits and vegetables prevented LDL from
depositing on the walls of blood vessel (Stockley, Simos & Pretorius, 2009). This
is due to the antioxidant properties of this compounds that prevents the LDL
form oxidising. Phenolic compounds such as catechin, quercetin and resveratrol
in wines seemed to work best at maintaining blood flow and endothelial (blood
vessel cells) functions.
In the production of cheese, lactic acid bacteria and rennet are added in
fresh milk to make milk protein coagulate and mature through a period of time,
whey floating on the surface of the curd is removed at the same time. Cheese is
concentrated milk, to produce 1 kg of cheese, about 10 kg of milk is needed.
According to statistics, there are nearly 2000 types of cheese in the world today.
According to composition and moisture content, cheese can be divided into four
major types, namely, soft, semi-soft, semi-firm, firm cheese.
Cheese is rich in protein, fat, amino acids, vitamins, minerals and other
ingredients. It is a fermented dairy product with high nutritional value. The
protein content of cheese is about 20% - 35%. Cheese are extremely easy to
digest, it has a digestibility of about 96% due to a series of pre-digestion
processes of the protein in the maturing process, while the digestibility of whole
milk is only 91%. Most cheeses contain about 30% fat, some people worry that
eating cheese will increase the body's cholesterol level, in fact this is usually not
the case, because cheese has very little cholesterol content, usually less than
0.1%.
Cheese also contains sugars, organic acids, calcium, phosphorus, sodium,
potassium, magnesium, iron, zinc and vitamin A, carotene and vitamin B1, B2,
B6, B12, folic acid and many other nutrients and bioactive substances. After
fermentation, protein in the cheese is decomposed to peptides, amino acids etc.,
very easy to be digested.
Cheese is also abundant in fat-soluble and water-soluble vitamins, there is
1200 IU vitamin A per 100g cheese, about 30% to 40% of the daily consumption
of an adult.
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Research shows that eating cheese can promote the growth and
development of children, it also has many health benefits such as anti-caries,
prevention of osteoporosis in women and elderly, protection of eyesight,
maintaining the balance and stability of normal intestinal flora, promote
digestion and preventing diarrhea and constipation. Studies also show that
people who eat cheese often have lower rate of colon and rectal cancer.
Lactose, which is contained in fresh milk, has been largely transferred into
the whey in the cheese production process, the remaining part of lactose is
decomposed into galactose and glucose, which helps to prevent diarrhea and
other lactose diseases in people who lack a type of enzyme to digest lactose.
Cheese is the best food for calcium, in the production process, calciumions are added so that the calcium content of cheese increases, and it can be
absorbed more easily. There is 49mg calcium per 100g milk, while 720mg
calcium per 100g cheese, which is 14 times more than in the milk.
6) REGIONAL VARIETIES
Most wines and cheeses in France are specific to a certain region. This is partlybecause of cultural history, but also very much related to the geographical
differences between different regions. For example, the grapes that are grown in
the Champagne and Alsace (north and north-eastern) regions of France are very
different from the grapes grown in Bordeaux or Provence, which are both
southern regions (Hanson, n.d). The same can also be said for French cheese.
The region of production for wine and cheese is of paramount importance
whenever one wants to buy them.
The vineyards of France developed in conjunction with the foreign trade.
However, in the 1800s, the advance of the French wine industry stopped
abruptly as first Mildew (a type of parasitic fungus), and then Phylloxera (a type
of insect that feed on roots and leaves of grapevines) spread through the
country, indeed across all of Europe, leaving the vineyards desolated. These
unfortunate events, then added with two world wars that hits France’s economy
has crippled the country’s dominating wine productions until the mid 1900s. Due
to the significant decrease in the quality and availability of prestigious French
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wines, on most bottles of French wine you will see the expression vin d'AOC
which stands for appellation d'origine controlee or controlled designation of
origin (Hanson, n.d). This is a French certification that granted to certain French
geographical indication for wines, cheeses, butters, and other farming
commodities, which is governed by a powerful oversight board, INAO (Institut
National des Appellations d'Origine – French organization charged with
regulating French agricultural products).
This stamp of approval administered by the Institut National des
Appellations d’Origine (INAO) was initiated in 1935 to safeguard the specificity of
products originating from France’s region, or terroirs (Gimmig, 2008). The AOC
outlined the standards for present wine policy and laws that serve both to
describe grape growing regions as well as guard the quality of wines. The AOC
served to redeem the country’s wine status and decide structured protocol for
quality and consistency within the French wine market. Consequently, France
has one of the oldest systems for protected designation of origin for wine in the
world, and strict laws concerning winemaking and production. The French law
divides wine into four categories, two falling under the European Union's Table
Wine category and two falling under the EU's Quality Wine Produced in a Specific
Region (QWPSR) designation. Two under European Union’s Table Wine are Vin de
Table, and Vin de Pays. The other two under the QWPSR designation are Vin
Délimité de Qualité Superieure (VDQS), and AOC.
Though the AOC label were originally intended to regulate wine and
brandies, the INAO’s jurisdiction was extended in 1990 to include dairy products
and processed foods thanks to the system’s tremendous popularity and
undeniable economic success (Gimmig, 2008). Consequently, within a ten-year
period, the INAO was entrusted with all AOC labels, and on a more general level,
with anything related to product origin. French cheeses come from many
different regions of France, and like wine, different regions specialize in different
flavours. The areas around Paris and to the northwest concentrate on the
softer brie and camembert while the eastern regions produce harder cheeses,
such as emmental (Hanson, n.d). Many central regions produce variants of goat
cheese, whereas in other regions cow or sheep's milk is more commonly used to
make cheeses.
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Several French cheeses include the town or region where they are
produced in the name of the cheese itself. For example Brie de Meaux
designates that this particular brie originates from the region of Meaux. Under
the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union, certain established
cheeses, including many French cheeses, are covered by a Protected
Designation of Origin and other, less stringent designations of geographical
origin for traditional specialities. A complete list of agricultural products with an
EU PDO (Protected Designation of Origin; laws that protects the names of wines,
cheeses, hams, sausages, olives, beers, Balsamic vinegar and even regional
breads, fruits, raw meats and vegetables.), PGI (Protected Geographical
Indication; uses the name of an area, a specific place or, in exceptional cases,
the name of a country, used as a description of an agricultural product or a
foodstuff), or TSG (Traditional Speciality Guaranteed; trademark for an
agricultural product or a foodstuff, which has a certain feature or a set of
features, setting it clearly apart from other similar products or foodstuffs
belonging to the same category). French cheese production is classified under
four categories, and PDO/AOC rules dictate which category(ies) each protected
cheese may be assigned to Fermier , a farmhouse cheese, which is produced on
the farm where the milk is produced; Artisanal, a producer producing cheese in
relatively small quantities using milk from their own farm, but may also purchasemilk from local farms; Coopérative, a dairy with local milk producers in an area
that have joined to produce cheese. In larger coopératives quantities of cheese
produced may be relatively large, akin to some industriel producers; and
Industriel, a factory-made cheese from milk sourced locally or regionally,
perhaps all over France (depending on the AOC/PDO regulations for specific
cheeses).
7) CELEBRATIONS
Predictably, due to the tremendous pervasiveness of wine and cheese in France,
there are lots of occasions celebrating them. The two most notable
celebrations are the welcoming the Beaujolais Nouveau ( beaujolais
nouveau) and the Rocamadour’s cheese festival ( Fête des Fromages).
a) Beaujolais Nouveau has arrived! (Le Beaujolais nouveau est
arrivé!)
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The French sip wine year round and hardly anyone needs an excuse to uncork a
velvety vintage. When a good excuse does call across the country, the French
collectively respond. Once a year, wine drinkers and Francophiles abroad toast
the opening of a new vintage with the arrival of the first wine of the year,
the beaujolais nouveau. Every third Thursday, supermarkets, restaurants, and
bars roll out the same banner, "The Beaujolais nouveau has arrived!" It is difficult
to escape this one day marketing campaign. It reaches to the far corners of the
Hexagon and far beyond. Every foreign soil French bistro and many decidedly
un-French restaurants honour the new nectar with special tastings, fixed price
menus, or simple mentions of the newest addition to the wine list.
Beaujolais isn't just a wine, it's also a region just north of Lyon. Here,
twelve different wines call themselves Beaujolais AOC, which certifies their
geographic origin. The AOC soils--calcium and clay like in the North, sandy and
granitic in the South--give the Beaujolais wines their trademark fruity aromas.
The characters of the wines reflect the variety of the soils. Beaujolais can be light
and crisp, strong and structured, even rich, almost mineral like. In fact, many
French don't even realize that Beaujolais wine stretches over such a wide palate.
The tradition of beaujolais nouveau hasn't been handed down through
generations. Unlike many French traditions, this one is no older than the
American tradition of fast food. During the 19th century, wine producers andtraders from the Beaujolais region began commercializing their harvest earlier
than most other regions. With the onset of fall, boatloads of 215 litre barrels
floated down the Saone to reach Lyon and its famous bouchon restaurants. Such
was the amount of wine carried by the river that the French now say three rivers
run through Lyon: the Rhone, the Saone, and Beaujolais. But no idea
of Beaujolais noveau existed, yet.
Officially, the idea of beaujolais nouveau didn't start until 1951, when
the Journal Officiel, the record of all legal decrees, published a law forbidding all
AOC wines to flow from their barrels before December 15. This meant for a 1951
vintage, the wine could not stop fermenting before December 15, 1951. The
Beaujolais producers, who for almost a century had been getting a jump on wine
sales, protested. Their argued that Beaujolais is a vin de primeur , best when
drunk young, before the New Year if possible. When left to ferment too long, the
wine begins to lose its fruity punch. The wine makers won their case and ever
since, Beaujolais and a handful of other meant-to-be-drunk-young wines have
been filling bistro carafes a few weeks before their red and white siblings.
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In 1985, after several modifications of the official date, the third Thursday
of November was designated. 1985 produced a river's worth of wine13 million
litresand the wine makers needed a little extra time to bottle their ruby river.
Ever since, oenophiles all over the world have had to wait until midnight, the
third Wednesday of November to dip their lips in the year's youngest wine. This
means that, thanks to time zones, Japanese oenophiles will be trying to discern
the raspberry and currant hints hours before the French can even get their noses
into the wine glass.
b) Rocamadour’s cheese festival
Every Whit Sunday, the biggest cheese festival in southern France (and perhaps
in the whole of France) is celebrated in the village of Rocamadour. During this
annual festival, wide varieties of cheeses of all ages and flavours are available
for tasting and purchasing from the open market, and there is also a cheese
competition. Other attractions of the festivals include music, barbeque, and
dinner and dance with a band called Les Milandes. The regional specialties
include goat and Roquefort cheeses, truffle pâté, lamb, and confits et magrets of
duck and goose. However, the kinds of cheeses are always a surprise when the
40 producers from 15 regions in the south come to Rocamadour to feature their
culinary creations (Fuller, n.d).
8) CONCLUSION
According to Fletcher (2007), cheese and wine is a winsome twosome that will
transform any party into a fun-filled celebration. However, French cheese and
wine seem to blend best together when they come from the same region. The
acids in the wine enhance the cheese flavour while the fat in the cheese helps
cut the tannins and acidity in the wine.
When you are having a party and you are planning to serve cheese and
wine as the main course, do bear in mind that there are certain rules that you
have to observe when it comes to choosing which wine to serve with which
cheese. Here are some accepted rules in wine and cheese pairing (Wine and
Cheese Pairing, 2008):
White wines match best with soft cheeses and stronger flavours.
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Red wines match best with hard cheeses and milder flavours.
Fruity and sweet white wines (not dry) and dessert wines work best with a
wider range of cheeses.
The more pungent the cheese you choose, the sweeter the wine should
be.
When offering several cheese choices in a wine and cheese pairing
spread, white wines fair better than reds. That’s because several cheeses,
particularly soft and creamy ones, leave a layer of fat on the palate that
interferes with the flavour in reds, rendering them monotonous and bland.
Quite the opposite, most of those sweeter whites nicely complement a full
range of cheeses. Additionally, the “sparkle” in a sparkling wine or champagne
can help break through the fat in heavier cheeses. Therefore, the spicy zing of a
Gewürztraminer or the peachy zip of a Riesling is ideal if you’re going for wide-
reaching appeal. Some would also suggest that you should pair wine and cheese
from the same region.
Ultimately, the perfect wine and cheese pairing is not a match made in
heaven. It is a match made on the palates of individuals of all tastes. The trick is,
do not diminish the taste of the wine by matching it with the correct cheese or
cheeses. With such great diversity, you can take as long as you can to find the
dynamic duo. Bon appétit!
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REFERENCES
Fletcher, J. (2007). Cheese and wine: a guide to selecting, pairing, and enjoying.
San Francisco, California: Chronicle Books LLC.
Hayes, D., & Laudan, R. (Eds). (2009). Food and nutrition. Malaysia: Marshall
Cavendish Corporation.
Marshall, R.T. (1999). Cheese. In The World Book Encyclopedia. (Vol 3, pp. 392-
395). United States of America: World Book, Inc.
Stockley,C. S., Simos, C. A., & Pretorius, I. S. (2009). Australian Wine Research
Institute (AWRI): to your health. Wine industry journal, 24(1). RetrievedJanuary 29, 2011, from http://www.docstoc.com/docs/62188338/AWRI-report-
The-French-Paradox
D’Silva, N.V. (n.d). French cheese. Retrieved January 28, 2011 from
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/french-cheese.html
France and the French. (n.d). Information maps of France. Retrieved January 22,
2011 from http://www.france-pub.com/emap.htm
Fuller, T. (n.d). Cheese festival Rocamador. Retrieved on January 27, 2011 from
http://www.worldreviewer.com/travel-guides/festival/
Gimmig, B. (2008). Appellation d’origine controlée : a regional label of
excellence. Retrieved January 29, 2011 from
http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/
Hanson, R. (n.d). History of French wine and cheese. Retrieved January 22, 2011
from http://french.lovetoknow.com/History_of_French_Wine_and_Cheese
Leary, C. & Perret, V. (n.d). Thoughts on cheese and wine. Retrieved on 28
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Nutritional Value of Cheese. (n.d). Retrieved on 09 February, 2011 from
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Terroir-France. (2010). French wine guide. Retrieved January 28, 2011 from
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Wine and Cheese Pairing. (2008). Retrieved on February 10, 2011 from
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spirits/Wine/French-Wines.html
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http://www.buzzle.com/articles/types-of-french-cheese.html, Khara, Kanika
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French Cheese, Retrieved on 2nd February
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Main Type of French Cheese, Retrieved on 2nd February
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