Tete de Moine

Description

The name Tete de Moine means monk’s head in French. It was invented in the 12^th Century by the monks of Bellelay Abbey in the Jura mountains of northwestern Switzerland. The monks taught the local farmers how to make it and they allegedly charged local farmers an annual fee of one cheese for each monk for the right to produce the cheese. This is where the name comes from: one cheese per monk’s head. It is made only from summer milk, ready to eat when the first leaves drop off the trees in the autumn. The aromas are of roasted nuts, a bit winelike. The flavours are sweet, tangy and nutty.