Tomme de Savoie Delivery or Pickup

Tomme de Savoie is a subgroup of Tomme cheeses that are small, round, and have a thick rind, but inside is a buttery, semi-hard cheese with many holes. Tomme de “the region that they originate from” represents the town or village where the cheese is made. For example, Tomme de Savoie is produced in Savoie, a village in the French Alps. 

After local farmers made butter and higher-fat cheeses for hundreds of years, they would use the leftover skimmed milk and turn it into this simple cheese. Since cheese keeps longer than milk, there was no waste. By using the skimmed milk, the fat content is lower, ranging from 20-40%. 

These cheeses have many different flavors depending on the region where they are produced, what the cows eat, and what time of year the cheese is made. Cheese produced in summer has a yellow color, is more flavorful, and grassier tasting since the cows graze on fresh grass and flowers. Winter cheese is described as earthy and rustic since the cows graze on hay.

Tomme de Savoie cheese is aged in cellars for several months. This is how the thick rind forms and how the flavors come about. Tomme de Savoie has tiny holes in it. Holes in cheese were once thought to be a problem. But the holes are important to the flavor—bigger holes in the cheese yield a stronger flavor, like Swiss cheese. Smaller holes yield a simpler flavor, like Tomme cheeses. The holes are created by bacteria that are released during later stages of the aging process. The bacteria release carbon dioxide gas that creates the holes. The longer the cheese is aged, the bigger the holes. Since most Tommes are aged for only a few months, the holes are smaller.