Comté Extra, 24 Months+

Comté Extra is a complex cheese with an exceptional depth of flavour and excellent richness. It has a gentle sweetness and flavours of roasted nuts but finishes with a fruity bite. There is a brilliant crystallisation through the cheese too, thanks to its long maturation.
Raw Cow's Milk
Matured for 24-36 months
Traditional Rennet
Pregnancy Friendly
Lactose Free
£26.00

Size

The History, Dairy & Farm, Animals & Maker

Comté is France’s highest production AOC cheese, with around 64,000 tonnes being made annually. Despite it’s high production, it is, and has for generations, been produced exclusively in small cooperative dairies in the Franche-Comté region of Eastern France.

The cheese is made exclusively during the summer months, from the raw milk of Montbéliarde cows, who graze freely on the highly diverse mountain pastures in the region. The terroir is hugely important in the final quality and flavour of the cheese and it is made under strict regulations to ensure an impeccable standard.

Every Comté cheese that is produced is inspected and tasted for quality and awarded a score out of 20. ‘Comté Extra’ is the highest grade and has a green paper band around the outside so that the best cheeses can be easily identified.

This Comté is aged first by Marcel Petite, at Fort St Antoine in the heart of the Jura mountains and then again in our ancient cellars, under our shop in Cambridge. Marcel Petite follows the philosophy of ‘affinage lent', or slow maturation, which means that the cheeses are kept at a cooler temperature, enclosed by the thick stone walls of the fort at 1100m elevation.

Sustainability

The cows are outdoor reared on mountains and the cheese is made seasonally during the summer within the same area, so there are very few food miles involved in production.