Agriculture and Beaufort PDO in Haute Maurienne Vanoise

Mountain farming requires a special kind of know-how. Maintaining meadows and mountain pastures, milking cows at altitude, making cheeses... Agriculture is still very much alive in Haute Maurienne Vanoise. Come and meet the farmers, see the herds in the mountain pastures and taste the quality products made by passionate mountain people.

And where there's good food, there's good eating! Jambon cousu from Bessans, trout from Sollières with Bonneval sur Arc blue cheese, Mont-Cenis blueberries, raspberries and wild strawberries, goat's cheese from Aussois, ewe's cheese from Sollières, Termignon blue cheese, mountain honey, local beers... so many recipes to try and share with family and friends!

Agricultural land first and foremost

Milk from Tarine cows to make Beaufort cheese

In the last century, there were very few families who didn't have cows, goats or sheep. Today, there are still many farmers, and most of them supply the milk used to make the prince of Gruyères cheese, Beaufort, PDO since 1968, as well as Bleu de Bonneval sur Arc, butter and yoghurts, which you can buy at the Cooperative laitière outlets in Haute Maurienne Vanoise.

Herds of sheep and cows graze at altitude throughout the summer, helping to maintain the landscape. Several alpine farms welcome you and show you their hard but beautiful life, and the products they are proud of. They'll tell you all about their work, milking, haymaking, calving, patous, wolves...

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Beaufort ripening cellar, Haute Maurienne Vanoise

The Dairy Cooperative

A collective system created in 1954, the Lanslebourg cooperative merged between 1966 and 2008 with the cooperatives of the other villages to form the agricultural unit represented by the Coopérative Laitière de Haute-Maurienne Vanoise.

Today, it is owned by 40 farmers. They entrust the collection, processing, maturing and marketing of their milk into Beaufort PDO and Bleu de Bonneval to qualified professionals employed by their Cooperative.

11,000 wheels of Beaufort cheese are produced every year by the Cooperative de Haute Maurienne Vanoise. Each one is made on site at Val Cenis-Lanslebourg with the 5 million liters of milk collected annually from Modane to Bonneval sur Arc. Alpine Beaufort, Summer Beaufort and Winter Beaufort delight the taste buds of even the most discerning gourmets!
The cheeses are made every day at the cooperative (the cows give milk every day, so production doesn't stop on Sundays or public holidays!), and it's possible to see the cheesemakers at work every morning: you can visit the cooperative, see the cheesemakers at work, and discover the impressive ripening cellar where the cheese remains for several months (minimum 5 months of ripening) before being offered for sale. A sensory experience for all the family!

Alpine pasture, summer, winter

The different types of Beaufort

Beaufort has been awarded the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée label, which imposes very strict specifications, including regular checks on milk producers and a minimum maturing period of 5 months.
Beaufort cheese comes in the form of a wheel weighing around 40 kg, 11 to 16 cm high and 35 to 75 cm in diameter, with a concave heel. The cheese's distinctive shape stems from its history: originally, the cheeses were produced in mountain pastures and brought down by mule. To prevent the cheeses from slipping during transport, this heel shape was developed to wrap a cord around the cheese wheel. All that remained was to hang a cheese on each side of the mule!

Beaufort cheese is smooth and ranges in color from ivory to pale yellow. Its texture is initially firm, then melts in the mouth.

There are several types of Beaufort:

  • Alpine Beaufort: a cheese produced at altitude by a single herd
  • Summer Beaufort: a cheese made from the milk of several herds. The cows graze directly on the meadows and mountain pastures. As the cows feast on fresh herbs and flowers, the cheese is generally more fragrant.
  • Winter Beaufort: a cheese made from milk collected when the cows are in the cowshed (generally from November to May). According to the strict specifications of the Beaufort appellation, they eat mainly local hay harvested in the valley in summer. It is sweeter in the mouth.

Other cheeses from Haute Maurienne Vanoise

Le Bleu de Bonneval sur Arc

Firm yet unctuous, this is an original product made from the milk of cows fed in alpine pastures. Matured in our cellars for a minimum of 3 months, it has the incomparable taste, freshness and character of the high mountains. 30,000 pieces, each 20 cm in diameter, 10 to 20 cm high and weighing around 2.5 kg, are produced each year. It is a registered trademark of the Cooperative de Haute Maurienne Vanoise.

Le Bleu de Termignon

A cheese so rare that it's often sold before it's even made! This mild, blue-veined cheese with a natural rind is produced exclusively in the Val Cenis Termignon mountain pastures, using milk from herds of Tarine cows grazing at altitudes of over 2,500 m during the summer. It comes in the form of a cylinder weighing around 30 kg, 30 cm in diameter and 15 cm high. Made from sour curds mixed with daily curds, it is matured for 4 to 5 months.

Other cheeses are also produced at Haute Maurienne Vanoise (tome, goat's and sheep's cheeses, etc.). Discover them in cheese shops or directly from producers.

 

The mountain pastures of Haute Maurienne Vanoise

Vast and numerous at Haute Maurienne Vanoise, the mountain pastures are home to cows, goats, sheep and ewes from June to September, producing high-quality milk at altitudes of between 1,800 and 2,500 m, right up to the foot of the glaciers. This milk is then transformed into cheese by the mountain farmers.

Cheese-making comprises 8 stages:

  • Time-limited milk storage
  • Ripening milk with ferments to develop lactic acid bacteria
  • Renneting and curdling, which transform milk from a liquid to a solid state.
  • Decanting to separate solids from whey
  • Stirring and heating to drain the curd grains
  • Moulding into a curd shape
  • Pressing and turning remove the serum from the cheese
  • Salting with brine or dry salt
  • Refining, the crucial stage that gives products their character

 

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Hello calves, cows, goats, sheep

In the heart of the mountain pastures, you will meet several breeds of cows:

Tarine has a uniformly fawn-brown coat, black mucous membranes, and black muzzle and eye rims. Its lyre-shaped horns are white with black tips. 1.30 m at the withers for 600 to 800 kg.

Abondance has a mahogany-red coat, matching "glasses", mask, belly, tail and white leg tips. 1.30 m at the withers for 600 to 700 kg.

Milk from these two breeds is authorized for Beaufort cheese production. These are hardy breeds, making them good walkers, solid and robust.

The sheep

At Haute Maurienne Vanoise, you'll often come across sheep of the Thônes and Marthod breeds. They are easily recognized by their spiral horns, white coat and black muzzle and "glasses". Their main quality is their resistance. They spend 3 to 4 months in the wild on the highest pastures, and are the best allies in maintaining the landscape and mountain pastures.

The goats

The goats found on alpine pastures are most often of the Alpina breed, which originated in Savoie. They too are easily recognized by their buff-colored coats. A stocky, sturdy animal, Alpina goats have good dairy qualities and a great sense of adaptation to altitude and its sometimes harsh climatic conditions.

Double-active

Passionate, multi-skilled men and women: farmers and ski instructors
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Cheese dairies

Direct sales at the farm or in store
Beauforts, blues, tomes... Find below the different points of sale in Haute Maurienne Vanoise.
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