The Jura's Mountain of Gold: Mont d’Or Cheese

Mont d’Or, a special winter cheese produced in the Jura Mountains

Fall is settling into the Jura Mountains in eastern France, close to the Swiss border. Les Rousses, located in the heart of the Jura Region, hosts France’s largest cross-country ski race – the Transjurassienne or La Transju’ since 1980, one of 20 Worldloppet events. As we slowly head towards winter, this is the time of year when the Montbéliard and French Simmental cows that have been grazing the sunny alpine pastures of the Jura make their way down to their winter barns in the valley.

As the seasons shift, so does the cheese production that the Jura region is known for. The same cows whose milk makes 90-pound wheels of Comté cheese in the summer start to produce less milk as the autumn days grow colder and shorter. Without enough milk to continue Comté production, dairy farmers and cheesemakers in the Jura Mountains have long turned to making smaller wheels of another regional specialty: Mont d’Or. Named after a peak on the French-Swiss border, which means mountain of gold, Mont d’Or requires much less milk: in fact, about half the milk that Comté requires to produce the same amount of cheese. 

Lumi trip leader Annette skiing the trails around Les Rousses, France

If Comté is the Jura Mountains’ summer cheese, Mont d’Or is the winter equivalent. Every year on August 15, cheesemakers in the Jura start Mont d’Or production. Once made, the cheese matures on locally harvested Spruce boards for 3 weeks before the earliest wheels become available at cheese shops in the Jura (of which there are plenty) in September. While snow falls on the 170 km of ski trails that criss-cross through the villages of Lamoura, Prémanon and Bois d'Amont, Mont d’Or production continues until March 15.

Mont d’Or is the perfect winter delicacy, as it is served warm. It is often enjoyed by dipping a fresh baguette into the gooey cheese and scooping out the tasty gold colored cheese.

Lumi trip leader Adele enjoying an appropriately melted local dish at a trailside gîte (cottage)

As it turns out, Lumi’s ski vacation to France’s Jura Mountains overlaps with Mont'd Or season. Stepping into a cozy gîte (cottage) off the cross-country ski trail to taste the seasonal Mont’d Or, is a highlight for our travelers on the trip. The Spruce bark around each wheel gives each bite a distinctly nutty flavor, reminiscent of the snow-covered Spruce trees that line the trails in the Jura.

Lumi guests in the Jura

Do you want to explore the flavors of the Jura region by ski this winter? Reach out to see the France trip itinerary and reserve your seat at Lumi’s favorite trail-side gîtes. Bon appetit!

See you on the trail,
Garrott Kuzzy
garrott@lumiexperiences.com