Époisses
AOP📍 Burgundy-Franche-Comté · Côte-d'Or
Washed-rind cheese bathed in Burgundy marc, powerful and creamy.
The cheese
A Burgundy native, created by Cistercian monks in the 16th century, AOP Époisses is one of France's most powerful cheeses. A soft-ripened washed-rind cow's-milk cheese (raw or pasteurized) moulded into a 250 g disc. Its originality comes from the ageing: for at least six weeks, the rind is washed with Burgundy marc, giving it its brilliant orange-red colour (sometimes sticky) and its characteristic scent — powerful, almost feral, penetrating. Beneath the rind, the paste is extraordinarily unctuous, almost runny at full maturity, with intense aromas of melted butter, grape marc, damp cellar and mushroom. Serve at room temperature with a Chambertin, a Marc de Bourgogne or a sweet Gewurztraminer. A Burgundian classic.