Epoisses cheese has a distinctive, sticky, wrinkled rind, which can vary in colour from ivory to orange, and even a darker shade of brick red. The rind is developed by regularly washing the surface of the young cheese with a mixture of brine and Marc de Bourgogne. The cheeses are washed for four to six weeks. As the cheese ripens, the smooth surface becomes more and more wrinkled and sticky, and the colour changes through the natural development of Brevibacterium moulds.
Always one of our favourites, Epoisses is usually the first to be snaffled after a photo shoot; and we were entirely happy with our version, until we tasted this one made by Fromagerie Gaugry. One mouthful and we knew we had to change producer. Fromagerie Gaugry are intensely proud of the traditions of Bourgogne, and are the last dairy to make a traditional, raw milk Epoisses.
There are records of Epoisses being made as long ago as the 16th Century, by monks close to the village of Époisses in Burgundy, but the cheese gradually died out. It was eventually revived in the 1950s. The rediscovery of this glorious cheese was rewarded by the award of an AOC Protected Designation Origin in 1991.
The cheese has a spicy, pungent aroma. When the edges start to collapse away from the sides of the wooden box, the Epoisses is ready to eat. The interior will have ripened to a silky smooth sometimes even liquid texture; and the flavour will have developed to a full, meaty, spicy richness, with an edge of sweetness. Colourants are strictly forbidden by the AOC, so the colour of the rind will vary during the season.
