🧀 Époisses

Époisses is a French soft washed-rind cheese with a protected designation of origin (PDO), made from whole cow's milk in Burgundy. Its rind is washed with water and marc de Bourgogne, so it is glossy, from pale orange to brick red, without any colorants. The aroma is powerful, and the paste is creamy and melts in the mouth. ¹⁵

A monks' cheese and the "king of cheeses". According to the specification summary, Cistercian monks in Époisses created the cheese in the early 16th century, and local farmers then developed it. ³ INAO adds that farm women in the villages of the Auxois took it up. ⁵ Madame de Sévigné praised it, in 1825 Brillat-Savarin called it the "king of cheeses", and from 1840 it was traded more widely. ³

Protected since 1991. Époisses became an appellation of origin in France in 1991. ⁵ The EU has protected the name since 21 June 1996. ¹² In 2007 an application to amend the specification was published: local breeds became mandatory, along with fodder from the area and a ban on non-standard additives. The EU approved these changes in 2008. ³⁴

The Auxois is its cradle. The historic area is the Auxois, a natural district in the west of the Côte-d'Or. Today it also covers the fodder lands of the Châtillonnais and the Langres plateau, that is much of the Côte-d'Or, three cantons of the Yonne and two of the Haute-Marne. ⁵ Gentle hills with marly soils favour natural grassland. They give the milk a distinctive mineral make-up. ³

Local breeds and local fodder. Milk comes only from Brune, Montbéliarde and Simmental Française cows. At least 85% of the yearly diet is fodder from the area, and supplements are under 30%. From turnout until at least 15 June, fresh grass makes up at least half of the basic ration, and for the rest of the year dry fodder and hay make up at least 30%. ³

The curd is not broken. Only rennet is used, and the curd is mainly lactic. It is cut roughly and put into moulds without being broken, and it drains on its own. Besides milk, only rennet, safe bacterial cultures, yeasts, moulds and salt are allowed. Freezing the raw material or the fresh cheese is banned. ³

A wash with marc. The cheese is dry-salted and matured for at least four weeks while being washed with water and marc de Bourgogne. The brick-red colour comes from the pigments of surface bacteria, and colorants are banned. ³ Many steps are still done by hand, and the ripening skill is essential. ³

Two formats and the figures. The small cheese is 95–115 mm across and weighs 250–350 g, the large one 165–190 mm and 700–1,100 g. It has at least 50% fat in dry matter and at least 40% dry matter. The paste is pale beige, soft and slightly salty, and may be partly proteolysed in the centre. ³ In 2024, 1,457 tonnes were sold, 1% less than in 2023 and 4% more than in 2014; farmhouse cheese made up 34 tonnes. ⁶

Époisses or Munster, Maroilles, Mont d'Or? All are washed-rind cheeses with a strong aroma, but each is a separate cheese. Époisses is made only from whole cow's milk of Brune, Montbéliarde and Simmental Française cows in Burgundy, with the curd put into moulds unbroken and draining on its own. Its rind is washed with water and marc de Bourgogne for at least four weeks, and the brick-red colour comes from surface bacteria, not colorants. The paste is pale beige, soft and slightly salty, and may be partly runny in the centre.

Look for the name “Époisses” and the EU PDO symbol (protected designation of origin). Genuine Époisses ripens at least four weeks and has a natural rind colour, glossy and from pale orange to brick red, without colorants. It is sold in two round formats, a small one of 250–350 g and a large one of 700–1,100 g. Typical places to find it are a cheesemonger, a supermarket cheese counter or a delicatessen.

Why it matters to you. Genuine Époisses ripens for at least four weeks and has a natural rind colour with no colorants. ³ The specification is about to change: in January 2026 INAO began examining a major amendment in which the producers' group takes account of climate change and the local microflora. ⁷