A tall cylindrical cow’s milk cheese made in the twin towns of Ambert and Montbrison and matured in old railway tunnels in the Auvergne.
The cheese is often featured in the original stained glass windows of the local churches and legend claims it was the forbear of the Stilton recipe introduced to the English Midlands at the time of the 11th century Norman Invasion.
Easily recognisable by its shape, which gently concertinas as the cheese matures, the natural rind is a powdery grey blue, and the texture is soft, dense and sticky with marbled blue veining. Mild and creamy, it has a good blue mould aftertaste.