Description
Mont d’Or PDO Baby Cheese
About Mont d’Or PDO Baby Cheese
Mont d’Or Baby is basically winter comfort food in a wooden box.
This small, whole version of France’s famous seasonal Mont d’Or is soft, rich and creamy, wrapped in spruce bark and packed into its own little wooden box. You can eat it just as it is, but the Baby really comes into its own when you warm the whole cheese until the centre becomes gloriously molten.
Made in the Haut-Doubs area of the Jura mountains, close to the Swiss border, Mont d’Or is produced only during the colder months. It’s the French cousin of Swiss Vacherin Mont d’Or AOP, but the two are separate protected cheeses with their own production rules.
And one of the important differences is that French Mont d’Or is made with raw cow’s milk.
A Proper Seasonal Cheese
Mont d’Or grew out of the traditional farming calendar of the Jura.
During the summer, when the cows produced plenty of milk, cheesemakers could make enormous wheels such as Comté PDO. Once the cows returned from the high pastures and milk production reduced, those great big cheeses were no longer so practical.
Instead, farmers made smaller cheeses that required less milk and could be eaten during the winter months.
Centuries later, we’re still doing exactly that. Mont d’Or remains a genuinely seasonal cheese, and its arrival each year is something worth looking forward to.
Protected by PDO Tradition
Mont d’Or is protected by PDO status, tying its production to the Haut-Doubs and preserving the traditions that make the cheese distinctive.
Each cheese is wrapped in a strip of spruce bark, known as a sangle. As the cheese matures and becomes increasingly soft, this little wooden belt helps hold everything together.
It also contributes to the flavour. That contact with the spruce gives Mont d’Or its characteristic woody, slightly resinous notes and adds another layer to the rich, creamy cheese.
The Baby is then packed into its own spruce box, which isn’t just rather lovely to look at — it also makes it perfect for warming and serving whole.
Mont d’Or PDO – Jen’s Tasting Notes
A ripe Baby Mont d’Or is a glorious thing.
Underneath the slightly sticky, ruffled rind you’ll find a pale, creamy interior that becomes softer and softer as the cheese matures. At room temperature it can already be wonderfully spoonable; warm it gently and it turns completely molten.
The flavour starts with warm milk, butter and cream, followed by hazelnuts, gentle earthiness and that lovely woody character from the spruce.
Despite being a washed-rind cheese, it isn’t frighteningly strong. It’s rich, savoury and wonderfully comforting, with just enough tang to stop all that creaminess becoming too much.
And because you’re buying the whole cheese, you get everything together — the rind, the gloriously soft middle and those slightly more intense flavours around the spruce-wrapped edge.
How to Serve and Pair Mont d’Or PDO
- Make sure you take it out of the fridge a good hour before you want to eat it. If you’re eating it as it is, you want that centre beautifully soft and creamy.
- Classic pairings: Keep it in the Jura with a glass of Savagnin. Its freshness and nutty character are wonderful with the rich cheese.
- Something a little different: A dry cider is brilliant too, with plenty of acidity to cut through the creaminess.
- On the plate: If your Mont d’Or is beautifully ripe, don’t overthink it. Take the lid off, grab some fresh sourdough and start dipping.
- In the kitchen: This is what the Baby was made for. Make a few little holes in the top, add some sliced garlic and a splash of white wine, then warm it in its wooden box until the middle is gloriously molten. Serve with bread, boiled potatoes or crudités for dipping. It’s basically a little one-cheese fondue.
Jen’s note: There aren’t many foods that come with their own cooking and serving dish, but Baby Mont d’Or does! Warm it in its little wooden box, put it in the middle of the table with plenty of bread and potatoes and let everyone dive in. It’s one of my favourite winter cheese suppers.
Buying Mont d’Or PDO
- Brand or Producer: Les Monts de Joux
- Product name: Mont d’Or PDO
- Milk: Cow
- Country: France
- Region: Jura
- Strength: Medium
- Vegetarian: No
- Suitable for pregnancy: No
- Allergens: MILK
Sizes and Prices
- A whole little wheel (approx. 450g), £18.95
Storage Advice
- Keep refrigerated
- Wrap in waxed paper or cling film
- Remove from the fridge before serving
- Consume within 10 to 14 days of opening
Delivery and Collection
- UK wide courier delivery
- Click and collect from our Pangbourne shop
- Free local delivery available for selected postcodes
Ingredients (Allergens are listed in capitals)
MILK, rennet, salt, ferments
