Valençay

The Valençay cheese: Introduction

The name of the Valençay cheese is that of the area of the Indre department which represents it (the most reputed place for its quality of terrain is the Levroux). The Valençay cheese is in the form of a truncated pyramid and it weighs 250 to 300 grams. The maturing process of the Valençay cheese lasts for 4 to 5 weeks to dry it out. Traditionally produced in the Berry, the Valençay cheese should be made in an area which stretches across the department of Indre and some of the communes of the bordering departments; Cher, Indre-et-Loire and the Loir-et-Cher.

Exterior appearance of the Valençay cheese: thin, even rind
Odour of the Valençay cheese: distinct caprice odour
Texture of the Valençay cheese: firm but without a hardness.

The History of the Valençay cheese.

The history of the Valençay cheese is still rather obscure, it is said that the cheese took its form as a pyramid to celebrate the return of Napoleon from his campaigns in Egypt; however, it is also said that its shape was to imitate that of the bell in the village of Valençay. The name of the Valençay cheese was brought up again at the time of the Empire, when Prince de Talleyrand cut the summit of the pyramid after an unexpected incident during a banquet which was held at his château in Valençay which Napoléon attended. In the 19th century, the farmers who reared goats around Valençay sent their cheeses to the markets of Paris.