Master Artisans

The raw sheep's milk that goes into Roquefort Carles is the milk of the very day it is collected. A living milk, worked quickly, with no buffer storage in the dairy. This precious raw material keeps the ferments to a minimum, for greater naturalness in the product. The curd, kept deliberately supple, lets the cheese be worked entirely by hand. The cutting of the curd, the moulding and the gestures of production are all done by hand. The house-cultivated Penicillium roqueforti and the hand-worked curd shape the texture, the aromas and the balance of Roquefort Carles.

For several generations, Maison Carles has cultivated its Penicillium roqueforti on bread, following the traditional method. The bread, made from rye flour, is baked at very high temperature and set in the cave to let the Penicillium develop. Harvested, dried, ground, then seeded at moulding; from this precious powder come the veining, the aromas and all the character of Roquefort Carles.

Roquefort Carles continues its ageing in the natural caves of Combalou. A hallmark of Maison Carles, it rests directly on oak travées, following the traditional method. The direct contact with the wood and the living air of the fleurines, the natural fissures in the rock that keep the caves in balance, naturally accompanies its ageing. Here, time does its work.