17.6.2022
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
C 234/13
The rearing system in the geographical area is characteristic of ‘Roquefort’.
It is based on the farming of sheep of the breed Lacaune and the use of fodder from close to the farm, without a system of transhumance.
The Lacaune is particularly well adapted to its environment.
Its woolly fleece, concentrated on its back, provides protection from the sun during the summer and helps the sheep cope with the heat.
Its hooves are adapted to stony soil.
During the grazing season, it is therefore able to draw maximum benefit from the vegetation in the geographical area, which is often low in nutrients.
The work on genetic selection undertaken in the geographical area for decades has made the Lacaune into a sheep recognised for its milk-producing qualities.
The sheep are reared in a traditional manner with a diet based on the grazing land and permanent and temporary grassland in the geographical area, which are used for grazing and for the cultivation of fodder.
There are restrictions on purchasing feed from outside the farm.
The manufacture of ‘Roquefort’ employs specific know-how.
The cheese is made from raw, whole milk.
The powders and cultures of Penicillium roqueforti used to seed the cheese are prepared from traditional strains found in the microclimate of the natural caves in the municipality of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon.
The cheese is drained without pressing.
Pricking is performed in order to aerate the cheese.
The ‘Roquefort’ is then ripened in the cellars located in the scree of the Combalou mountain, which are naturally ventilated with fresh, damp air, for the length of time necessary for the good development of Penicillium roqueforti.
It is then wrapped in protective packaging to slow the growth of Penicillium roqueforti and continues to develop through slow maturation.
‘Roquefort’ is a blue-veined cheese produced exclusively from raw, whole sheep’s milk and ripened and matured for at least 90 days from the date of its manufacture.
The paste is smooth, with even green-blue veins, a very distinctive aroma with a slight scent of mould, and a fine, robust taste.
The use of the Lacaune breed, the traditional system of rearing and the feed based on the resources in the geographical area influence the composition of the sheep’s milk, in particular the fatty acids, which carry the flavours.
This milk, used raw, contributes to the particular aroma of ‘Roquefort’, which is brought to the fore during ripening and maturing by Penicillium roqueforti.
The manufacture of ‘Roquefort’ from raw, whole milk requires the cheesemaker to demonstrate flexibility.
The knowhow applied during production, such as draining without pressing, which creates the regular openings in the paste, and pricking, which allows air to penetrate, are essential to the development of Penicillium roqueforti during ripening, producing a paste with evenly distributed veining.
The ripening cellars built in the scree of the Combalou mountain, ventilated by ‘fleurines’, offer natural physical and biological conditions that are particularly conducive to the ripening of ‘Roquefort’.
In this special climate, Penicillium roqueforti enjoys an environment very favourable to its development.
It multiplies in the cheese, transforms the paste, colours it green-blue and gives it all its flavour.
The slow maturing that follows ripening develops the smooth texture of the ‘Roquefort’ paste and, at the end of a minimum period of 90 days, its very distinctive aroma with a slight scent of mould is fully developed.
Reference to publication of the specification http://info.agriculture.gouv.fr/gedei/site/bo-agri/document_administratif-ce7087ff-374d-4ef9-bb80-df1367047144