Catching a Rainbow

In the heart of Brittany, half way between Rennes and Vannes in the département of Morbihan one finds the village of Campénéac.


The Abbaye de la Joie Notre Dame (the Joy of our Lady,) is of the Cistercian Order of the Strict Observance. It is a community of nuns formed in 1921 when they moved to the abbey in 1953. Previously they had been part of the Abbaye de la Coudre at Laval and when they moved they took their cheese making skills with them.

The cheese still made at the abbey is made from cow’s milk, and is of the semi-soft uncooked variety. It has a washed outer rind and is similar in appearance to Port Salut the cheese from which it is derived.

Unlike Port Salut, Abbaye la Joie Notre Dame is still made in small quantities and retains much of the characteristics of the original hand made cheese or Entrammes.
(Unfortunately in 1873 the abbey, which made Port Salut sold out to a factory and the cheese is now mass-produced, the orange rind made from plastic.)

Abbaye de la Joie Notre Dame comes in the form of a large disc 20 cm in diameter and 5 cm thick weighing approximately 1.4-1.4Kg, although it also comes 250 g and 390 g sizes.
The cheese aged for five weeks has a 50% fat content and is available all year round. During the ripening stage the cheese is washed with brine

I am currently looking for a picture of this cheese, if you have one then I would appreciate a copy via e-mail
to malcolm@malcolmhamilton.net


Wine
Goes well with a young fruity red Bordeaux such as Château Maurine 2004 or a Stowels Merlot


References and acknowledgements

web site for the abby
http://www.chambarand.com/53.0.html
Abbaye de la Coudre : BP 0537 - rue St Benoît - 53005 LAVAL -