Saint Agur (pronounced ) is a
blue cheese
Blue cheese is any cheese made with the addition of Microbial food cultures, cultures of edible Mold (fungus), molds, which create blue-green spots or veins through the cheese. Blue cheeses vary in flavor from mild to strong and from slightly ...
brand owned by
Savencia Fromage & Dairy
Savencia Fromage & Dairy, named Bongrain until 2015, is a French food company specializing in the production of cheeses. Brands include Saint Agur Blue, Saint Albray, Etorki, Alouette and Pié d'Angloys. An independent family group, it is ...
Group and made with pasteurised cow's milk from the village of
Beauzac in the Monts du Velay, part of the mountainous
Auvergne
Auvergne (; ; or ) is a cultural region in central France.
As of 2016 Auvergne is no longer an administrative division of France. It is generally regarded as conterminous with the land area of the historical Province of Auvergne, which was dis ...
region of central
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. It is made from
pasteurised
In food processing, pasteurization (American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), also pasteurisation) is a process of food preservation in which packaged foods (e.g., milk and fruit juices) are treated wi ...
cow's milk
Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of lactating mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfeeding, breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. ...
, enriched with
cream
Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this proces ...
, and contains 60%
butterfat
Butterfat or milkfat is the fatty portion of milk. Milk and cream are often sold according to the amount of butterfat they contain.
Composition
Butterfat is mainly composed of triglycerides. Each triglyceride contains three fatty acids. Butt ...
, qualifying it as a double-cream cheese. Aged for 60 days in cellars, the cheese becomes stronger and spicier as it ages.
The moist, rich, white cheese has characteristic olive green mould veins throughout and a smooth, creamy texture with a subtle mild spicy taste resembling a softer and finer
Roquefort
Roquefort () is a sheep milk blue cheese from southern France. Though similar cheeses are produced elsewhere, European Union law, EU law dictates that only those cheeses aged in the natural Combalou caves of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon may bear the na ...
in presentation and taste. It is not as salty as more traditional blue cheese, and its tangy and creamy nature is balanced so as not to overpower with a sharp bite, although this is dependent on the age of the cheese. Owing to its double-cream nature, this cheese is easily spread and also melts well.
Saint Agur is produced in
octagonal prisms, rendering a shape that makes it easy to cut into wedges. It has no rind and sometimes comes in foil to prevent the cheese from becoming more blue.
See also
*
List of cheeses
This is a list of cheeses by place of origin. Cheese is a milk-based food that is produced in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms. Hundreds of types of cheese from various countries are produced. Their styles, textures and flavors dep ...
References
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{{Blue cheeses
French cheeses
Occitan cheeses
Blue cheeses
Cow's-milk cheeses