Price range: £5.30 through £31.80
Brebirousse d’Argental is a wonderfully creamy French sheep’s milk cheese with an unmistakable orange rind. Don’t let its bold appearance fool you — underneath you’ll find a soft, silky cheese with buttery, nutty flavours and a lovely gentle tang.
Brebirousse d’Argental is one of those cheeses that people spot in the counter and immediately want to know more about.
And you can see why.
With its bright orange rind and wonderfully creamy centre, it looks for all the world like it’s going to be a big, pungent washed-rind cheese. But cut into it and you get something completely different: a soft, rich sheep’s milk cheese with a surprisingly gentle flavour.
It’s a brilliant reminder that you should never judge a cheese by its rind!
Brebirousse d’Argental is made by Fromagerie Guilloteau in France’s Rhône-Alpes region. They’re known for making wonderfully soft, indulgent cheeses, and Brebirousse takes that idea in a slightly different direction by using sheep’s milk rather than cow’s milk.
The name gives us a couple of clues. Brebis means ewe in French, while rousse means red or reddish, so Brebirousse is essentially telling you that this is a reddish sheep’s milk cheese before you’ve even opened it.
That wonderful orange colour comes from annatto, a natural colouring that’s also used in cheeses such as Red Leicester.
And this is where Brebirousse likes to trick people.
That orange rind looks very much like the sticky rind you’d expect on a washed-rind cheese, so people often assume it’s going to smell rather lively. In reality, the rind is soft and delicate and the cheese underneath is wonderfully creamy.
Brebirousse is made with pasteurised sheep’s milk and ripens from the outside in. When it’s younger, the centre is firmer, but as it matures you’ll see that lovely soft layer developing just beneath the rind until eventually almost the whole cheese becomes gloriously squidgy.
For me, texture is one of the best things about Brebirousse.
When it’s beautifully ripe, the inside becomes soft, silky and almost spoonable. Cut into it and it has a tendency to bulge out slightly, which is always a good sign in my book.
The sheep’s milk gives it a richness that you don’t always get from a similar cow’s milk cheese. There’s plenty of sweet cream and butter, followed by a gentle tang and a lovely nuttiness that sometimes reminds me of hazelnuts.
The rind adds another layer altogether, bringing a little earthiness and mushroomy savouriness to all that creamy sweetness.
But despite how it looks, this isn’t a cheese that’s going to frighten anyone.
In fact, I’ve found Brebirousse is a really good introduction to sheep’s milk cheese for someone who thinks they’re going to find it too strong. It has plenty of character, but it’s the texture and richness that tend to get people coming back for another piece.
Jen’s note: Brebirousse is a brilliant example of why you shouldn’t decide whether you’ll like a cheese just by looking at it. That bright orange rind makes people expect something seriously smelly, but underneath it’s beautifully creamy and surprisingly gentle. Never judge a cheese by its rind!
Sizes and Prices
Storage Advice
Delivery and Collection
Ingredients (Allergens are listed in capitals)
MILK, salt, starter cultures, rennet, annatto
Normal opening Monday – Saturday 9am – 4pm until:
Sunday 22nd 9am – 4pm
Monday 23rd 9am – 4pm
Christmas Eve 9am – 12pm
Christmas Day Closed
Boxing Day Closed
Friday 27th Closed
Saturday 28th 9am – 4pm
Sunday 29th Closed
Monday 30th 9am – 2pm
Tuesday 31st 9am – 2pm
New Year’s Day Closed
Thursday 2nd January Closed
Friday 3rd 9am – 4pm then open as normal
After Christmas our courier delivery slots start from 8th January.
