Known as the ‘king of cheeses and cheese of kings’
in France, Brie de Meaux was also popular with emperors. According to legend,
it was the favourite cheese of Charlemagne in the Middle Ages, who was
introduced to the cheese by the monks of Abbaye de Jouarre, who made it.
Protected by a PDO, the cheese must be made with raw milk in the Brie region
(now mainly Seine-et-Marne and Île-de-France) 30 miles east of Paris. The
coagulation temperature must not exceed 37°C and the curd is ladled into moulds
by hand using a scoop-like tool called a pelle à Brie. This stops it from
breaking up and helps retain moisture. The cheeses are salted after they drain
and acidify in the moulds.
