Tomme de Savoie is a French cheese from the Savoie region (Savoie and Haute-Savoie).
Tomme de Savoie is a cheese from the Savoyard and therefore Alpine mountains. It was first made by peasant families for their subsistence, and is undoubtedly the oldest cheese in Savoie.
It is part of the economic and cultural heritage of the two departments and benefits from the Savoie regional label and a PGI obtained in 1996. It is a cheese made from cow's milk of the Tarine (Tarentaise) and Abondance breeds.
It is a cheese made from cow's milk of the Tarine (Tarentaise) and Abondance breeds, with cow's milk of the Montbéliarde breed included later, as well as recently, and in part, that of the Prim'Holstein breed, with the obligation not to exceed the original number of animals.The word tomme is also given to goat's milk cheeses with a similar appearance except for their size.
Tomme is a pressed, uncooked cheese with an average weight of 1.6 kg. It is renneted at 30 to 35 °C using rennet from the calf's rennet and then, after stirring, the tomme is moulded and salted.
The rind, which is always grey, is covered with yellow or red mould and is sometimes pierced with holes, just like the cheese.
Its best tasting period is from June to October after a 10-week maturing period in cellars with careful rubbing and turning so that the bloomy rind develops.
But it is also excellent from March to December. Its paste, white to pale yellow, is sticky and gives off a cellar or mouldy smell. It melts in the mouth and develops a nutty taste. Tommes made with milk from animals grazing in summer are more fragrant:
There are four types of tomme: farmhouse with a green label; fruitière (local name of a cooperative) with a red label; industrial production without a label; family production that is not subject to any statistics.Since the end of 2003, the edge of the Savoy tomme has been decorated with the letters SAVOIE in capital letters, using an inkjet inscription, using a technique that complies with food safety standards.
