Road trip enthusiast: the cheese road in aveyron!

Invest in a 12v cool box to bring back a sample of cheese each on your trip! It is so difficult to resist... Don’t forget to go via a bakery on your way, to get great bread to accompany your cheese platter! If the roads of Aveyron are sometimes like a Swiss cheese, don’t make a fuss; it is a road trip after all! ;)

Thérondels

Located in the far north of the departement, at approximately 1,000m altitude, the village of Thérondels is home to the cheese of the same name. It is really a beautiful place, at the foot of the highest mountains of the departement. Here, we make an uncooked, pressed cheese, made with unpasteurised cow’s milk called the “Thérondels”. The cows have plenty to graze on in the surrounding area. It is made by the cheese cooperative of the village which produces it. Its crust is orangey, a bit golden and inside we discover a soft texture with small holes. It requires 4 to 6 months refining, has a fruity nut taste and is best served with potatoes. It can be used for a cheese fondue or a kind of tartiflette and with a good bottle of white wine, it is exquisite.

Since you are now in Thérondels, and you’ve come all the way up here, take this opportunity to also be a tourist! Go to see the Laussac Peninsula, the Sarrans Lake, the damn and the bridge on the Truyère River. See Antoine and its agrimuseum and have a walk in the “Sentier de l'imaginaire” (The imaginary path)...

Laguiole

Famous for its knives and also for its cheese, Laguiole is an interesting stopover for the gastronomy tourist. Laguiole is a creamy and firm textured cheese, a tomme made from unpasteurised cow’s milk. It is used for the preparation of the famous aligot (a traditional mashed potato French dish).

A recipe with potatoes and melted liquid tome cheese, it must be said...it is rather calorific. But that’s fine, as not far from Laguiole, there is a ski resort, the Bouyssou, so you can burn off all these calories... During summer, go hiking, the landscapes are beautiful (small cascades, a stone bridge and discovery paths)! Don’t forget to visit the cutlery makers; there are several of them. Also the Saint-Matthieu Church, the former stone presbytery, and see the panoramic view from the Esplanade du Fort.

Rivière sur Tarn

Go to Rivière-sur-Tarn to discover and taste another blue-veined cheese from the Aveyron, the Bleu des Causses. It is less strong than it cousin the Roquefort, it is also matured in naturally ventilated caves, and also holds a PDO (Protected Designation of Origin). In Rivière-sur-Tarn, discover the Caves de Peyrelade, where the cheese is refined. The Bleu des Causses is has been made in these humid caves since 1856. There are some maturing masters, who are committed to preserving it its reputation not as simply another blue-veined cheese, but as a distinct cheese in its own right.

While you are here, go to see the Peyrelade Castle, a particuliar medieval fortress, built on a cliff, in the shape of a ship’s bow.

La Cavalerie

Visit the Bergers du Larzac in La Cavalerie, a dairy which offers sheep’s cheeses, a tomme matured in natural caves, and other cheeses from local producers. There is also the Fromagerie des Artisous, to discover the best cheeses of the Larzac. Take a break here, and have a stroll in this beautiful fortified town. Admire the round towers, the stone buildings. La Cavalerie, is a tumultuous name, and the centre of a tough battle: the Lutte du Larzac. (The Fight for the Larzac [1971 to 1981] refers to a non-violent civil disobedience action by farmers resisting the extension of an existing military base on the Larzac plateau. It ended in victory for the resistance movement when the newly elected President François Mitterrand formally abandoned the project.

Roquefort-sur-Soulzon

Made with sheep’s milk, the Roquefort is matured in special “fleurines” caves, which have cleft in the rocks, providing perfect ventilation. Roquefort-sur-Soulzon is located in the south of the Massif Central, it is a small town of less than 400 people, proud of its cheese since the 15th century. Here, the eponym cheese is an employment vector in the whole region; hundreds of people work in the Roquefort industry, in particular the farmers who pamper the sheep that produce the precious milk for its confection. In Roquefort-sur-Soulzon, during a walk in the vicinity of the town, take a walk on the Chaos rocheux (block field), a pile of rocks and, nearby, admire the tall Menhir (a Standing stone) on the town.

In Roquefort, there is also another cheese, the Pérail. It is a family cheese, which is made from the same milk than the one used for the Roquefort, but the families kept a bit of milk for their personal consumption and confection of this cheese a bit sour, small and round. It is unctuous and soft.