Bleu de Laqueuille
Bleu de Laqueuille is a blue-veined cow's milk cheese from the Puy-de-Dome in Auvergne, France. Born at Laqueuille in 1854, it is the ancestor of the region's other blues and comes as 2.5 kg cylinders with an ivory paste marbled blue-green.
Key Facts
| Country of Origin | France |
| Specific Origin | Laqueuille |
| Milk Type | Cow's milk |
| Milk Treatment | Pasteurized |
| Fat Content | 30% |
| Rind | Natural |
| Texture | Soft, blue-veined |
| Flavor | Salty, spicy, tangy |
| Aroma | Earthy |
| Colors | Blue |
| Forms | Cylinders of 2.5 kg, 20 cm in diameter and 9.5 cm tall |
| Age | 6 weeks minimum |
What is Bleu de Laqueuille Cheese?
Bleu de Laqueuille is an Auvergne cheese from the Puy-de-Dome. It takes its name from the commune of Laqueuille, in the west of the department, some thirty kilometres southwest of Clermont-Ferrand. Antoine Roussel, born in 1820 in the hamlet of Villevialle, worked out the method. He seems to have connected the mould that appeared on rye bread loaves with the mould on cheese, both stored in the same drawers, and started seeding the curd with it. In 1854 the cheese was officially born.
Production runs two ways. In the industrial process the milks are mixed and pasteurized; farmhouse cheese comes from a single herd and the milk stays raw. Roussel saw that the mould grew better with air, so he also pierced the cheese, which gave a more evenly veined paste. The technique was later taken up for the other blues of the region. Ripening lasts six weeks at minimum, after which the paste softens and the rind dries.
The wheels are cylinders weighing 2.5 kg, 20 cm across and 9.5 cm high. The paste is ivory, scattered with blue-green mould. Fat content is given as 45%. Six cantons of the Puy-de-Dome make it: Bourg-Lastic, Herment, Rochefort-Montagne, Pontaumur, Pontgibaud and Tauves.
How Does Bleu de Laqueuille Cheese Compare?
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